LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 

Class 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING 
AND   ROPE  TRANSMISSION 


THE   POWER   HANDBOOKS 

The  best  library  for  the  engineer  and  the  man  who  hopes 
to  be  one. 

This  book  is  one  of  them.  They  are  all  good  —  and 
they  cost 

$1.00  postpaid  per  volume.     (English  price  4/6  postpaid.) 


5 OLD   SEPARATELY   OR  IN  SETS 


BY    PROF.    AUGUSTUS    H.    GILL 

OF  THE  MASSACHUSETTS   INSTITUTE  OF   TECHNOLOGY 

ENGINE  ROOM  CHEMISTRY 

BY  HUBERT   E.   COLLINS 

BOILERS  KNOCKS  AND  KINKS 

SHAFT  GOVERNORS  PUMPS 

ERECTING  WORK  SHAFTING,    PULLEYS     AND 
PIPES  AND  PIPING  BELTING 

BY  F.  E.   MATTHEWS 
REFRIGERATION.     (In  Preparation.) 


HILL   PUBLISHING    COMPANY 

505  PEARL  STREET,   NEW  YORK 

6  BOUVERIE  STREET,  LONDON,  E.  C. 


THE    POWER    HANDBOOKS 


Shafting,   Pulleys,  Belting 


AND 


Rope  Transmission 


COMPILED  AND  WRITTEN 
BY 

HUBERT    E.    COLLINS 
4 


Published   by  the 

Me  G  raw  -Hill    B  ook.  Comp  any 


Ner 

Successors  to  the  BookDepartments  of  tKe 

McGraw  Publishing  Company  Hill  Publishing  Company 

Publishers  of  Books  for 

Elec  trical  World  The  Engineering  and  Mining  Journal 

The  Engineering  Record  Power  and  The  Engineer 

Electric  Railway  Journal  American    Machinist 


Copyright,  1908,  BY  THE   HILL   PUBLISHING   COMPANY 


GENERAL 


/c  \ 

All  rights  reserved  ,X\    j 

VA 


Hill  Publishing  Company,  New  Tork,  U.S.A. 


INTRODUCTION 

THIS  handbook  is  intended  to  furnish  the  reader 
with  practical  help  for  the  every-day  handling  of 
shafting,  pulleys  and  belting.  These  are  allied  in  the 
operation  of  plants  and  it  is  a  pretty  generally  con- 
ceded fact  that  all  three  are  much  neglected  by  many 
operators. 

A  close  perusal  of  these  pages  will  enable  the  reader 
to  determine  the  best  course  to  pursue  in  the  most 
common  instances  and  in  various  troubles,  and  in  all 
articles  there  are  suggestions  for  similar  cases  which 
may  arise. 

For  instance,  the  need  of  belt  dressing  as  a  pre- 
servative, now  generally  conceded  by  most  authorities, 
is  fully  covered  in  Chapter  XI  and  the  result  of  a  test 
made  by  disinterested  parties  to  find  the  degree  of 
efficiency  of  four  of  the  best  known  dressings  is  given. 
The  results  are  of  importance  to  all  belt  users. 

A  portion  of  the  book  is  also  given  to  rope  trans- 
mission which  is  in  more  general  use  to-day  than  ever 
before,  and  in  this  connection  some  advice  is  offered 
by  experts  as  to  the  selection  and  care  of  the  rope. 
Rope  splices  and  how  to  make  them  will  also  prove 
valuable  to  many  engineers. 

The  author  wishes  to  make  acknowledgment  to 
various  contributors  -to  Power  whose  articles  are  used 


196488 


vi  INTRODUCTION 

herein,  and  to  some  special  contributors,  from  whose 
articles  small  portions  have  been  taken.  Acknowl- 
edgment is  also  made  to  Stanley  H.  Moore,  the  author 
of  "Mechanical  Engineering  and  Machine  Shop  Prac- 
tice" for  the  section  on  splicing. 

HUBERT  E.  COLLINS. 

NEW  YORK,  November,  1908. 


CONTENTS 

CHAP.  PAGE 

I  SHAFTING  HINTS .  i 

II  SHAFTING  HINTS 21 

III  SHAFTING  HINTS 32 

IV  TRUING  UP  LINE  SHAFTING 49 

V  APPARATUS  FOR  LEVELING  AND  LINING  SHAFTING    .  54 

VI  SOME  PRACTICAL  KINKS 61 

VII  PRACTICAL  METHODS  OF  LOOSENING  PULLEYS   .      .  65 

VIII  SPLICING  LEATHER  BELTS 72 

IX  CARE  AND  MANAGEMENT  OF  LEATHER  BELTS    .     .  89 

X  BELTING  —  ITS  USE  AND  ABUSE 99 

XI  A  COMPARATIVE  TEST  OF  FOUR  BELT  DRESSINGS   .  102 

.  XII  BELT  CREEP '„     .  106 

XIII  ROPE  DRIVES       .      .     .....     t     .     .     *  108 

XIV  A  NEW  SCHEME  IN  ROPE  TRANSMISSION       .     .     .  115 
XV  How  TO  ORDER  TRANSMISSION  ROPE      ....  122 

XVI  A  BELTING  AND  PULLEY  CHART 129 

XVII  SPLICING  ROPE 135 

XVIII  WIRE  ROPE  TRANSMISSION 143 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 

OF 


SHAFTING   HINTS  1 

IN  the  installation,  maintenance  and  repair  of  shaft- 
ing, as  in  all  other  things,  there  is  a  right  and  a  wrong 
way;  and  though  the  wrong  way  ranges  in  its  defects 
from  matters  causing  trivial  inconvenience  to  absolute 
danger,  the  right  too  often  —  owing  to  lack  of  knowl- 
edge or  discernment — finds  but  scant  appreciation. 

Where,  as  is  often  the  case,  the  end  of  a  shaft  is 
journaled  to  admit  of  the  use  of  an  odd,  small-bore 
pillow  block  or  wall-box  hanger,  the  journaled  part 
should  equal  in  length  twice  the  length  of  the  hanger 
bearing  plus  the  length  of  the  collar.  The  hanger  can 
thus  readily  be  slid  out  of  the  wall  box,  and  the  neces- 
sity of  uncoupling  this  shaft  length  and  removing  it 
before  access  to  the  bearing  for  purposes  of  cleaning 
or  repair  is  done  away  with. 

A  plank  or  board  A  (Fig.  i),  about  J  to  J  inch  longer 
than  the  distance  from  the  bottom  of  the  shaft  to  the 
floor,  can  be  used  to  good  advantage  at  such  times  to 
free  the  hanger  of  the  shaft's  weight,  and  to  prevent 
the  shaft's  springing  from  its  own  weight  and  the  pulleys 
it  may  be  carrying. 

Should  it  become  necessary  to  place  a  pulley  with 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Chas.  Herrman. 

I 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


half  the  hub  on  and  half  off  the  journaled  part,  this 
can  readily  be  done  by  the  use  of  a  split  bushing,  as 
shown  in  sectional  view  of  Fig.  i . 


FIG.  i. 

Very  often  a  small-sized  bearing  is  used  and  the  shaft 
journaled  off  to  act  as  a  collar.  Of  this  procedure  it 
can  only  be  said  that  if  done  with  the  idea  of  making  a 
"good  job"  it  signally  fails  of  its  object;  if  of  necessity 
(a  collar  being  insufficient),  then  the  shaft  is  heavily 
overloaded  and  serious  trouble  will  result,  because  of  it. 

It  is  advisable  to  center  punch,  or  otherwise  mark, 
the  ends  of  both  shafts  held  by  a  compression  coupling 
close  up  against  the  coupling,  and  both  edges  of  the 
coupling  hub  should  have  a  punch  mark  just  opposite 
and  close  to  the  shaft  punch  marks.  These  marks  will 
serve  at  all  times  to  show  at  a  moment's  glance  any 
end  or  circumferential  slippage  of  the  shafts  within 
the  coupling.  The  same  method  can  be  resorted  to 
for  proof  of  pulley  slippage. 

When  a  new  line  of  shafting  is  put  up,  the  foot  posi- 
tion of  each  hanger  should  be  clearly  marked  out  on 
their  respective  timbers  after  the  shaft  has  been  brought 


SHAFTING   HINTS  3 

into  alinement.  Hangers  can  thus  be  easily  put  back 
into  their  proper  place  should  timber  shrinkage  or  heavy 
strains  cause  them  to  shift  out  of  line.  This  idea  can  be 
applied  to  good  advantage  on  old  lines  also,  but  before 
marking  out  the  hanger  positions  the  shaft  should  be 
tried  and  brought  into  perfect  alinement. 

Hangers  that  do  not  allow  of  any  vertical  adjustment 
should  not  be  used  in  old  buildings  that  are  liable  to 
settle.  Shafting  so  run  pretty  nearly  always  gets  out 
and  keeps  out  of  level. 

In  flanged  bolt  couplings  (Fig.  i)  no  part  of  the  bolt 
should  project  beyond  the  flanges.  And  where  a  belt 
runs  in  close  proximity  to  such  a  coupling,  split  wood 
collars  should  be  used  to  cover  in  the  exposed  coupling 
flanges,  bolt  heads  and  nuts.  Countershafts  have  been 
torn  out  of  place  times  innumerable  by  belts  getting 
caught  and  winding  up  on  the  main  line. 

Whenever  possible  a  space  of  8  to  10  inches  should 
be  left  between  the  end  of  a  shaft  line  and  the  wall. 
A  solid  pulley  or  a  new  coupling  can  thus  readily  be 
put  on  by  simply  uncoupling  and  pushing  the  two 
shaft  lengths  apart  without  taking  either  down.  Ten 
inches  does  not  represent  the  full  scope  of  pulleys 
admissible,  for  so  long  as  the  pulley  hub  does  not  ex- 
ceed a  m-inch  length  the  pulley  face  (the  more  readily 
in  proportion  to  the  larger  pulley  diameter)  can  be 
edged  in  between  the  shafts. 

Fig.  2  is  an  instance  of  bad  judgment  in  locating  the 
bearings.  In  one  case  this  bearing  overheated;  the 
remedy  is  either  to  re-babbitt  the  old  box  or  replace 
it  with  a  new  one. 


4  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

Both  pulleys  were  solid  and  the  keys  —  headless 
ones  —  had  been  driven  home  to  stay.  The  rims  of 
both  pulleys  almost  touched  the  wall,  and  the  cir- 
cumferential position  on  the  shaft  of  both  these  pulleys 
was  such  as  to  preclude  the  possibility  (owing  to  an 
arm  of  a  being  in  a  direct  line  with  key  Bl  and  arm 
of  b  with  key  a1)  of  using  anything  but  a  side  offset 
key  starting  drift. 


FIG.  2. 

An  effort  was  made  to  loosen  b  (which  was  farthest 
from  the  wall)  by  sledge-driving  it  toward  the  wall, 
hoping  that  the  pulley  might  move  off  the  key.  The 
key,  as  was  afterward  found  out,  not  having  been  oiled 
when  originally  driven  home  had  rusted  in  place  badly; 
though  the  pulley  was  moved  by  sledging,  the  key, 
secure  in  the  pulley  hub,  remained  there. 

Ultimately  one  of  us  had  to  get  into  pulley  b,  and, 
removing  cap  c,  hold  the  improvised  side  offset,  long, 
starting  drift  D  in  place  against  B1  at  b2  while  the  other 
swung  the  hand  sledge  at  a.  The  entering  end  of  the 
key,  not  having  been  file  chamfered  off,  as  it  should 
have  been  (see  E),  our  starting  drift  burred  it  up;  so, 
after  having  started  it,  we  had  the  pleasure  of  getting 


SHAFTING  HINTS  5 

into  b  to  file  the  key  end  b2  into  shape  so  as  to  admit 
of  getting  it  out. 

The  solid  pulley  b  has  since  been  replaced  with  a 
split  pulley. 

By  the  arrangement,  as  shown  in  Fig.  3,  of  the  rim- 
friction  clutch  on  the  driven  main  shaft  B  and  the 
driving  pulley  on  the  engine-connected  driving  main 
shaft  A,  no  matter  whether  B  shaft  is  in  use  or  not  — 
i.e.,  whether  the  clutch  be  in  or  out  of  engagement  — 
so  long  as  A  shaft  is  in  motion  the  belt  C  is  work- 
ing. 


FIG.  3. 

Main  line  belts  come  high,  and  the  more  they  are 
used  the  sooner  will  they  wear  out.  By  changing  the 
clutch  from  shaft  B  to  A  and  the  pulley  D  from  A  to  B, 
belt  C  will  be  at  rest  whenever  B  is  not  in  use.  Where, 
however,  these  shafts  are  each  in  a  separate  room  or 
on  a  different  floor  (the  belt  running  through  the  wall 
or  floor  and  ceiling,  as  the  case  may  be)  the  clutch, 
despite  belt  wear,  should  be  placed  directly  on  the 


6  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

driven  shaft  (as  B),  so  as  to  provide  a  ready  means 
for  shutting  off  the  power  in  cases  of  emergency. 

Figs.  4,  5  and  6  represent  a  dangerous  mode,  much 
in  vogue,  of  driving  an  overhead  floor.  An  extremely 
slack  belt  connects  the  driving  shaft  A  and  the  driven 
shaft  B;  when  it  is  desired  to  impart  motion  to  the 
driven  shaft  the  belt  tightener  C  is  let  down  and  belt 
contact  is  thus  secured. 


FIG.  4. 


FIG.    . 


FIG.  6 


This  tightener  system  is  called  dangerous  advisedly, 
for  few  are  the  shops  employing  it  but  that  some  em- 
ployee has  good  cause  to  remember  it.  Unlike  a  clutch 
-  where  control  of  the  power  is  positive,  instantaneous 
and  simple  —  the  tightener  cannot  be  handled,  as  in 
emergency  cases  it  has  to  be. 

In  any  but  straight  up  and  down  drives  with  the 
driven  pulley  equal  to  or  larger  (diametrically)  than 
the  driver,  unless  the  belt  have  special  leading  idlers 
there  is  more  or  less  of  a  constant  belt  contact  with  its 
resultant  liability  to  start  the  driven  shaft  up  unex- 
pectedly. When  the  tightener  is  completely  off,  the 


SHAFTING   HINTS  7 

belt,  owing  to  heat,  weight  or  belt  fault,  may  at  any 
time  continue  to  cling  and  transmit  power  for  a  short 
space,  despite  this  fact. 

These  tighteners  are  usually  pretty  heavy  —  in  fact, 
much  heavier  than  the  unfamiliar  imagines  when  on 
the  spur  of  emergency  he  grapples  them,  and  trouble 
results. 

Tightener  (in  Fig.  5)  A  is  held  in  place  by  two 
threaded  rods  B  —  as  shown  by  slot  a  in  A1  —  and 
regulated  and  tightened  by  ring-nuts  C  working  along 
the  threaded  portion  of  B.  C  (of  Fig.  4)  is  also  a 
poor  arrangement.  Fig.  6  is  the  best  of  them  all. 

Apropos  of  clutches,  great  care  must  be  exercised 
in  tightening  them  up  while  the  shafting  is  in  motion, 
for  if  the  least  bit  overdone  the  clutch  may  start  up 
or,  on  being  locked  for  trial  (according  to  the  clutches' 
structure),  continue  running  without  possibility  of 
release  until  the  main  source  of  power  be  cut  off. 
Nothing  can  exceed  the  danger  of  a  clutch  on  a  sprung 
shaft. 

Heavily  loaded  shafting  runs  to  much  better  advan- 
tage when  center  driven  than  when  end  driven,  and 
what  often  constitutes  an  overload  for  an  end  drive 
is  but  a  full  load  for  a  center  drive.  To  illustrate, 
here  is  one  case  of  many:  The  main  shaft  —  end  driven 
—  was  so  overloaded  that  it  could  be  alined  and 
leveled  one  week  and  be  found  out  one  way  or  the 
other,  frequently  both  ways,  the  next  week.  Being 
tired  of  the  ceaseless  tinkering  that  the  condition  under 
which  that  shaft  was  working  necessitated,  the  pro- 
prietors were  given  the  ultimatum:  A  heavier  line  of 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


shafting  which  would  be  sure  to  work,  or  a  try  of  the 
center  drive  which,  owing  to  the  extreme  severity  of 
this  case,  might  or  might  not  work. 

A  center  drive,  being  the  cheapest,  was  decided  upon. 
Pulley  A,  Fig.  7,  which  happened  to  be  a  solid,  set- 
screw  and  key-held  pulley,  was  removed  from  the  end 
of  the  shaft.  The  split,  tight-clamping-fit  pulley  B, 
Fig.  8,  was  put  in  the  middle  of  the  shaft  length;  the 


ENGINE  DRIVEN 


J rf 


FIG.  7. 


c 

C 

I 

[XI 

(XI                            i 

2 

ENGINE  DRIVEN 

FIG.  8. 

gas  engine  was  shifted  to  accommodate  the  new  drive, 
and  hanger  C1  was  put  up  as  a  reinforcement  to  hanger 
C  and  as  a  preventive  of  shaft  springing.  After  these 
changes  the  shaft  gave  no  trouble,  so  that,  as  had  been 
'.  hoped,  the  torsional  strain  that  had  formerly  all  been 
at  point  i  must  evidently  have  been  divided  up  between 
points  2  and  3. 

When  a  main  shaft  is  belted  to  the  engine  and  to  a 
countershaft,  as  shown  in  Fig.  9,  the  pulley  A1  gets  all 
the  load  of  main  and  countershafts.  In  the  arrange- 
ment shown  in  Fig.  10  point  i  gets  A's  load  and  2  gets 
£'5  load  and  is  the  better  arrangement. 


SHAFTING   HINTS  9 

Where  a  machine  is  situated  close  to  one  of  the 
columns  or  timber  uprights  of  the  building  it  is  very 


FIG.  9. 


FIG.  10. 


customary  to  carry  the  belt  shifter  device  upon  the 
column,  as  in  Fig.  n.  The  sudden  stoppage  of  a 
machine  seldom  does  any  damage,  whereas  an  unex- 


IF  SHIFTED  AGAINST  UPRIGHT 
WILL-SHUT  OFF  POWER 


FIG.  ii. 


pected  starting  may  cause  irreparable  damage  and 
often  even  endanger  the  limb  and  life  of  the  machine 
operative. 


10  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

To  avoid  the  possibility  of  some  passing  person 
brushing  up  against  the  shifting  lever  and  thus  starting 
the  machine,  the  tight  and  loose  pulleys  of  the  counter- 
shaft should  be  so  placed  that  when  A  is  exposed  — 
that  is,  away  from  the  column  —  its  accidental  shifting 
shall  stop  the  machine.  Fig  12  makes  this  point  clear. 


^ LOOSE  PULLEY 

FlG.    12. 

This  arrangement  is  often  used  to  save  a  collar  (at 
A).  The  oil  runs  out  between  the  loose  pulley  and  the 
bearing,  especially  if  the  latter  be  a  split  bearing;  the 
loose  pulley,  instead  of  being  totally  free  when  the  belt 
is  on  the  tight  pulley,  acts  more  or  less,  in  proportion  to 
the  end  play  of  the  shaft,  as  a  buffer  between  the  tight 
pulley  and  the  bearing;  finally,  the  tight  pulley  is 
deprived  of  the  support  (which,  when  under  load,  it 
can  use  to  good  advantage)  a  nearer  proximity  to  the 
hanger  would  give  it. 

The  shafts  of  light-working  counters  should  not  be 
needlessly  marred  with  spotting  or  flats  for  collar  set- 
screws,  nor  should  cup  or  pointed  set-screws  (which 
mar  a  shaft)  be  used.  If  the  collar  be  sharply  tapped 
with  a  hammer,  diametrically  opposite  the  set-screw, 
while  it  is  being  tightened  up,  all  slack  is  taken  out  of 
the  collar;  and  the  hold  is  such  that,  without  resource 


SHAFTING   HINTS  II 

to  the  same  expedient  when  loosening  the  collar,  a 
screwdriver  will  scarcely  avail  against  a  slotted  set- 
screw. 

When  required  to  sink  the  head  of  a  bolt  into  a 
timber  to  admit  of  the  timbers  lying  snug  in  or  against 
some  spot,  if  allowable,  the  bolt's  future  turning  can 
be  guarded  against  by  cutting  the  hole  square  to  fit 
the  bolt  head.  But  where  a  washer  must  be  used,  the 
only  positive  and  practical  way  to  prevent  the  bolt 
from  turning  is  to  drive  a  nail  (as  shown)  into  A  (Fig. 
13)  far  enough  for  the  nail  head  to  flush  B;  now  bend 


SECTION  ON  X-X 


FIG.  13. 

the  head  down  behind  the  bolt  toward  c.  It  is  evident 
that  if  the  bolt  tries  to  turn  in  the  direction  of  3  the  nail 
end  (wood  held)  will  prevent  it;  if  toward  4,  the  nail 
head  will  be  forced  against  the  wood  and  catch  hold 
of  the  bolt  head. 

Large  belts  of  engines,  dynamos,  motors,  etc.,  when 
in  need  of  taking-up  are  usually  attended  to  when  the 
plant  is  shut  down;  that  is,  nights,  Sundays  or  legal 
holidays.  At  such  times  power  is  not  to  be  had;  and 
if  the  spliced  part  of  the  belt,  which  must  be  opened, 
shortened,  scraped,  re-cemented  and  hammered,  hap- 
pens to  be  resting  against  the  face  of  one  of  the  pulleys, 
is  up  between  some  beams  or  down  in  a  pit,  the  chances 
of  the  job,  if  done  at  all,  being  any  good  are  very  slim. 

The  spliced  part  of  a  large  belt  should  be  clearly 


12  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

marked  in  some  permanent  and  easily  recognizable 
way  (a  rivet,  or  where  the  belt  is  rivet-held  at  all  its 
joints  some  odd  arrangement  of  rivets  is  as  good  a  way 
as  any).  This  marking  will  minimize  the  possibility  of 
mistake  and  enable  the  engineer  to  place  the  belt  splice 
in  the  position  most  favorable  for  the  belt-maker's 
taking-up. 

In  wire-lacing  a  belt,  very  often,  despite  all  efforts 
and  care,  the  edges  of  the  belt  (A,  B)  get  out  of  line,  as 
shown  in  Fig.  14,  and  make  the  best  of  jobs  look  poor. 
By  securing  the  belt  in  proper  position  by  two  small 
pieces  of  wire  passed  through  and  fastened  at  1,2,3 
and  4,  Fig.  15,  the  lacing  can  be  more  conveniently 


7 


FIG.  14.  FIG.  15. 

accomplished  and  the  edge  projection  is  avoided.  When 
the  lacing  has  progressed  far  enough  to  necessitate  the 
removal  of  wires  c  d,  the  lacing  already  in  place  will 
keep  the  belt  in  its  original  position. 

A  wire  lacing  under  certain  conditions  will  run  a 
certain  length  of  time  to  a  day.  On  expensive  ma- 
chinery whose  time  really  is  money  it  pays  to  renew  the 
lacing  at  regular  intervals  so  as  to  avoid  the  loss  of 
time  occasioned  by  a  sudden  giving  out  of  the  lace. 

Never  throw  a  belt  on  to  a  rim-friction  or  other  kind 
of  clutch  while  the  shaft  is  in  full  motion.  Belts,  when 
being  thrown  on,  have  a  knack,  peculiarly  their  own, 


SHAFTING   HINTS  13 

of  jumping  off  on  the  other  side  of  the  pulley.  And 
should  a  belt  jump  over  and  off  on  the  wrong  side  and 
get  caught  in  the  clutch  mechanism,  as  the  saying 
goes,  "  there  will  be  something  doing"  and  the  show 
usually  comes  high.  It  pays  to  slow  down. 

A  mule  belt  (transmitting  in  the  neighborhood  of 
or  considerably  over  25  horse-power)  that  runs  amuck 
through  the  breaking  down  of  the  mule  can  make 
enough  trouble  in  a  short  time  to  keep  the  most  able 
repairing  for  a  long  while. 


FIG.  i 6. 

No  matter  what  the  pulley  shafts  holding  arrange- 
ment and  adjusting  contrivance  may  be,  all  of  the 
strain  due  to  belt  weight,  tension,  and  the  power 
transmitted  falls  mainly  at  points  A,  A*,  Fig.  16;  and 
it  is  here  that,  sooner  or  later,  a  pin,  set-screw  or  bolt 
gives  way  and  the  belt  either  gets  badly  torn  up,  rips 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


something  out  of  place,  or  a  fold  of  it  sweeping  to  the 
floor  slams  things  around  generally  until  the  power 
is  shut  off. 

The  remedy  is  obvious :  Reinforce  A,  A'  by  securing 
B,  Bf  to  the  supporting  shaft  c  at  c1,  c2.  The  yoke  x 
is  a  reliable  and  practical  means  to  this  end.  Straps  a 
held  by  the  nuts  b  hold  the  yoke  securely  on  the  sup- 
porting shaft  c,  while  the  pulley-shaft  ends  B,  B'  are 
held  in  the  U  of  the  yoke  at  w'  at  any  desired  distance 
from  c  by  means  of  the  adjustment  provided  by  the 
nuts  b. 


SIDE  VIEW 


FIG.  17. 

The  end  of  a  hanger  bearing  was  badly  worn  (Fig. 
17).  The  cap  could  be  lifted  out  by  removing  bridge 
A,  but  the  shaft  interfered  with  the  lifting  of  the  bottom 
out,  owing  to  its  being  held  in  the  hanger  slides.  It 
had  to  be  removed  and  we  were  called  upon  to  put  it 
into  shape  by  re-babbitting. 

Being  a  newspaper  plant,  money  was  no  object; 
the  time  limit,  however,  was  three  hours,  or  hands  off. 


SHAFTING   HINTS  15 

Opening  the  3o-inch  engine  belt  and  removing  the 
interfering  shaft  length  was  out  of  the  question  in  so 
short  a  time.  So  the  job  was  done  as  follows :  The  shaft 
was  braced  against  down  sag  and  engine  pull  along  the 
line  B  C  by  a  piece  of  timber  at  A,  and  against  pull  on 
B  D  by  timber  arrangement  X;  timber  y's  points  y1 


y1 

^ 

</2 

TIMBER  ARRANGEMENT  X 

I 

Z 

1 

and  f  resting  against  the  uprights  at  i  and  2,  timber 
I  wedged  in  between  y  at  y3  and  the  shaft  at  4,  thus 
acting  as  the  stay  along  line  B  D.  The  nuts  and 
washers  a,  a  were  removed;  the  bolts  driven  back  out 
of  the  bracket ;  the  end  of  a  rope  was  thrown  over  the 
shaft  at  b,  passed  through  the  pulley  and  tied  to  the 
bracket  and  hanger  which,  as  one  piece,  were  then 
slid  endways  off  the  shaft  and  lowered  to  the  floor. 
The  bearing  was  cleaned,  re-babbitted  and  scraped, 
everything  put  back,  stays  removed  and  the  shaft 
running  on  time  with  a  half-hour  to  the  good. 

When  desirable  to  keep  a  shaft  from  turning  while 
chipping  and  filing  flats,  spotting  in  set  screws  or 
moving  pulleys  on  it,  it  can  be  done  by  inserting  a 
narrow  strip  of  cardboard,  soft  wood  or  several  thick- 
nesses of  paper  between  the  bearing  cap  and  the  top 
of  the  shaft  and  then  tightening  the  cap  down. 

The  packing,  1-16  to  3-16  inch  thick  and  about  as 


i6 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


long  as  the  bearing,  must  be  narrow;  otherwise,  as 
may  be  deduced  from  Fig.  18  (which  shows  the  right 
way),  by  the  use  of  a  wide  strip  in  the  cap  the  shaft 
is  turned  into  a  wedge,  endangering  the  safety  of  the 
cap  when  forced  down.  At  point  3  packing  does  no 
harm,  but  at  i  and  2  there  is  just  enough  space  to  allow 
the  shaft  diameter  to  fit  exactly,  with  no  room  to  spare, 
into  the  cap  bore  diameter. 


SOFT   WOOD    PACKING 


FIG.  i 8. 

As  a  very  little  clamping  will  do  a  good  deal  of 
holding  the  clamping  need  not  be  overdone.  A  shaft 
can  also  be  held  from  turning,  or  turned  as  may  be 
desired,  by  holding  it  with  a  screw  (monkey)  wrench 
at  any  flat  or  keyway,  as  shown  in  sectional  view, 
Fig.  19. 

When  a  shaft  breaks  it  is  either  owing  to  torsional 
strain  caused  by  overload,  springing  through  lack  of 


SHAFTING   HINTS  17 

hanger  support  at  the  proper  interval  of  shaft  length, 
the  strain  of  imperfect  alinement  or  level,  or  a  flaw. 

An  immediate  temporary  repair  may  be  effected 
by  taking  some  split  pulley  that  can  best  be  spared 
from  another  part  of  the  shaft  and  clamping  it  over  the 
broken  part  of  the  shaft,  thus  converting  it,  as  it  were, 
into  a  compression  coupling.  The  longer  the  pulley 
hub  the  better  the  hold;  spotting  the  set-screws  — 
that  is,  chipping  out  about  J-inch  holes  for  their  accom- 
modation into  the  shaft  —  is  also  a  great  help. 


FIG.  19. 

If  when  the  shaft  breaks  it  has  not  been  sprung  by 
the  sudden  dropping  of  itself  and  the  pulleys  that  were 
on  it,  a  permanent  repair  can  be  effected,  after  correct- 
ing the  cause  of  the  break,  by  the  use  of  a  regular  key- 
less compression  coupling. 

If  it  has  been  sprung,  a  new  length  comes  cheapest 
in  the  wind-up ;  and  if  overload  was  the  original  cause 
of  the  trouble,  only  a  heavier  shaft  or  a  considerable 
lightening  of  the  load  will  prevent  a  repetition. 

In  Fig.  20  A  shows  how  to  drive  to  make  belt  weight 
count  in  securing  extra  contact.  In  B  this  weight 
causes  a  loss  of  contact.  Bearing  in  mind  that  B  is 
not  only  a  loss  from  the  normal  contact  but  also  a  loss 
of  the  extra  contact  that  A  gives,  it  will  readily  be  seen 
how  important  a  power-saving  factor  the  right  sort  of 


i8 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


a  drive  is  —  especially  on  high-speed  small-pulley  ma- 
chines, such  as  dynamos,  motors,  fans,  blowers,  etc. 


EXAGGERATED  FOR 
CLEARNESS 


FlG.  20. 


A  good  many  electrical  concerns  mount  some  of  their 
styles  of  dynamos  and  motors  (especially  the  light 
duty,  small  size)  upon  two  K-shaped  rails,  Fig.  21 
(the  bottom  of  the  motor  or  dynamo  base  being  V- 
grooved  for  the  purpose).  The  machine's  weight  and 


SECTION  ON 

x-x 


FIG.  21. 


the  screws  A  are  counted  on  to  keep  it  in  place.  If 
the  machine  be  properly  mounted  on  these  rails,  as 
regards  screws  A  in  relation  to  its  drive,  the  screws 
reinforce  the  machine's  weight  in  holding  it  down  and 
also  permit  a  surer  adjustment  through  this  steady 
holding  of  the  machine. 


SHAFTING  HINTS  19 

Fig.  22  shows  the  machine  properly  mounted.  The 
belt  tension  and  pull  tend  to  draw  B  corner  of  the 
machine  toward  the  shaft  C;  and  screw  B1  is  there  to 
resist  this  pull.  Owing  to  this  resistance  and  the  pull 
along  line  D,  E  tends  to  lift  and  slew  around  in  E1 
direction;  screw  E2  is,  however,  in  a  position  to  over- 
come both  these  tendencies.  If  the  screws  are  both 
in  front,  there  is  nothing  but  the  machine's  weight 
to  keep  the  back  ,of  it  from  tilting  up.  The  absurdity 
of  placing  the  screws  at  F  and  G,  though  even  this  is 
thoughtlessly  done,  needs  no  demonstration. 


SIDE 
ELEVATION 


E 
G 

F 
B 

FIG.  22. 

When  putting  a  new  belt  on  a  motor  or  dynamo, 
both  the  driver  and  the  driven  are  often  needlessly 
strained  by  the  use  of  belt-clamps,  in  the  attempt  to 
take  as  much  stretch  out  of  the  belt  as  possible.  On 
being  loosely  endlessed  it  soon  requires  taking  up;  and 
if  only  laced,  when  the  time  for  endlessing  comes  the 
belt  is  botched  by  the  splicing  in  of  the  piece  which, 
owing  to  the  insufficiency  of  the  original  belt  length, 
must  now  be  added  to  supply  enough  belt  to  go  around, 
plus  the  splice. 


' 


20  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

The  proper  mode  of  procedure  is:  Place  the  motor 
on  its  rails  or  slides  5  inches  away  from  its  nearest 
possible  approach  to  the  driven  shaft  or  machine  and 
wire-lace  it  (wire-lacing  is  a  very  close  second  to  an 
endless  belt).  Let  it  run  for  a  few  days,  moving  the 
motor  back  from  the  driven  shaft  as  the  belt  stretches. 
When  all  reasonable  stretch  is  out,  move  the  motor 
back  as  close  to  the  driven  shaft  as  possible. 

The  5  inches  forward  motion  will  give  10  inches  of 
belting,  which  will  be  amply  sufficient  for  a  good  splice; 
and,  further,  the  machine  will  be  in  position  to  allow  of 
tightening  the  belt  up,  by  simply  forcing  the  motor 
back,  for  probably  the  belt's  lifetime. 


II 

SHAFTING   HINTS1 

THE  bolts,  set-screws,  pulleys,  bearings,  shafting  and 
clutches  of  a  plant,  although  among  the  foremost 
factors  in  its  efficiency,  are  very  often  neglected  until 
they  reach  the  stage  where  their  condition  absolutely 
compels  attention. 

Very  often  this  lack  of  proper  attention  is  due  to 
surrounding  difficulties  of  an  almost  insurmountable 
and  most  discouraging  nature.  At  other  times  it  is 
due  to  a  lack  of  proper  appreciation  of  the  damage 
resultant  from  seemingly  insignificant  neglects.  How 
to  overcome  some  of  these  difficulties  is  the  object  of 
this  chapter. 

Fig.  23  shows  a  case  of  a  turning  bolt.  The  head  is 
inaccessible  and  the  bolt's  turning  with  the  nut,  owing 
to  burrs  or  rust,  prevents  either  the  tightening  or  the 
loosening  of  the  nut.  One  to  three  fair-sized  nails 
driven  through  the  timber  as  at  C,  hard  up  against,  or, 
better  still,  forced  into  a  tangent  with  the  bolt,  will 
often  suffice  to  hold  it  while  the  nut  is  being  turned.  In 
iron  girders,  beams,  etc.,  the  nail  method  being  im- 
possible, a  slot  E  can  easily  be  cut  with  a  hack-saw 
through  the  lower  end  of  both  the  nut  and  bolt,  so 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Chas.  Herrman. 
21 


22 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


that  the  bolt  may  be  held  by  a  screwdriver  while  the 
nut  is  turned  with  a  wrench. 

Where  an  extra  strong  screwdriver  must  be  used, 
the  use  of  two  blades  at  the  same  time  in  the  hack-saw 
frame  will  give  a  slot  of  the  requisite  width.  Where 
the  bolt's  end  projects  beyond  the  nut  and  it  is  desired 
to  tighten  the  nut,  a  Stillson  wrench  is  often,  though 
inadvisedly,  called  into  service.  This  tends  to  spoil  the 
lower  threads  of  the  bolt  and  thus  prevents  any  future 
loosening,  except  by  the  cutting  off  of  the  projecting  end. 


0= 
c 

3E 

• 
• 

h-  M  1 

i 

l! 

FIG. 


As  the  alinement  and  level  of  shafting  depend  on  the 
power  of  their  hold,  bolts,  lag-bolts  and  set-screws 
should,  when  they  are  tightened,  be  so  in  fact  and  not 
in  fancy. 

The  proper  way  to  use  a  wrench,  especially  a  screw 
wrench,  so  as  to  avail  yourself  of  every  ounce  of  power, 
not  of  your  biceps  only  but  of  your  whole  body,  is  as 
follows :  Place  your  shoulders  on  a  level  with  the  object 
to  be  tightened,  secure  the  wrench  jaws  well  upon  it, 


SHAFTING   HINTS  23 

grasp  the  jaws  with  the  left  hand  and  the  wrench  handle 
with  the  right,  holding  both  arms  straight  and  tense; 
swing  the  upper  part  of  the  body  to  the  right  from  the 
hip,  backing  the  force  of  your  swing  up  with  the  full 
force  of  your  legs,  steadying  yourself  the  while  with 
your  left-hand  grip  on  the  wrench  jaws,  which  are  the 
center  of  your  swing.  Several  such  half  turns,  at 
the  wind-up,  will  cause  an  extremely  hard  jam  with 
comparative  ease. 

In  tightening  up  a  split-pulley,  the  expedient  of 
hammering  the  bolts  tight,  by  means  of  an  open-ended 
bolt-wrench  and  a  small  sledge,  is  often  resorted  to. 
If  the  head  of  the  bolt  be  lightly  tapped  while  the  nut 
is  being  tightened,  even  a  light  hammering,  except 
in  the  extremest  cases,  becomes  unnecessary. 

Split-pulleys  are  invariably  better  held  in  place  by 
a  good  clamping  fit  than  by  set-screws.  It  must  also 
be  borne  in  mind  that,  for  good  holding,  set-screws  must 
be  spotted  into  the  shaft,  and  this  defaces  and  often 
materially  weakens  the  shaft.  Split-pulleys,  like  solid 
ones,  are  sometimes  subject  to  stoppage,  owing  to 
excessive  strain.  Set-screws,  at  such  times,  cut  a  shaft 
up  pretty  badly;  whereas,  if  clamped,  only  a  few  slight 
scratches  would  result. 

Where  packing  with  paper,  cardboard,  emery  cloth 
or  tin  becomes  necessary  to  secure  a  good  clamping  fit, 
care  should  be  taken  to  put  an  equal  thickness  of  pack- 
ing into  both  halves  of  the  pulley;  otherwise  it  will 
wabble  and  jump  when  running. 

Emery  cloth,  on  account  of  its  grittiness,  is  pre- 
ferable for  packing  where  the  duty  done  by  the  pulley 


24  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

is  light.  When  the  duty  done  is  extra  heavy,  emery 
cloth,  despite  its  grittiness,  will  not  do;  tin  or  sheet 
iron,  owing  to  body,  must  be  used. 

The  following  is  the  most  practical  way  of  packing  a 
split-pulley  to  a  good  clamping  fit,  assuming  that  emery 
cloth  is  to  be  used: 

The  thickness  of  the  emery  cloth  to  be  used,  and 
whether  to  use  one  or  more  folds,  can  readily  be  ascer- 
tained by  calipering  the  shaft  diameter  and  pulley 
bore,  or  by  trial-clamping  the  pulley  by  hand.  In  both 
of  these  instances,  however,  due  allowance  must  be 
made  for  the  compressiveness  of  the  packing  used. 
If  the  packing  be  too  thin,  the  pulley  will  not  clamp 
strongly  enough ;  if  too  thick,  the  chances  of  breaking 
the  lugs  when  drawing  the  bolts  up  are  to  be  appre- 
hended. 

Having  determined  the  proper  thickness  of  emery 
cloth  to  be  used,  place  the  pulley  on  the  shaft,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  24.  Into  the  lower  half  C,  in  space  A,  which  is 
out  of  contact  with  the  shaft,  place  a  sheet  of  emery 
with  the  emery  side  toward  the  hub  and  the  smooth 
side  toward  the  shaft.  The  width  of  the  emery  should 
be  a  little  less  than  half  of  the  shaft's  circumference, 
and  it  should  be  long  enough  to  project  about  one-half 
of  an  inch  to  an  inch  on  each  side  of  the  hub. 

Now  turn  the  pulley  on  the  shaft  so  that  the  position 
of  the  halves  shall  become  reversed  (Fig.  25),  C  on  top, 
B  on  bottom.  See  that  the  emery  cloth  remains  in  its 
proper  position  in  half-hub,  the  smooth  side  being 
toward  the  shaft;  the  projecting  length  beyond  the 
pulley  hub  will  help  you  to  do  this. 


SHAFTING  HINTS  25 

Into  half-hub  B  (space  D)  insert  a  similar  sized  piece 
of  emery  cloth,  smooth  side  toward  the  hub  and  the 
emery  side  toward  the  shaft.  Draw  up  on  your  bolts  to 
clamp  the  pulley  into  position.  Be  sure,  however, 
that  no  emery  cloth  gets  in  between  the  half-hubs  or 
lugs  at  points  i  and  2,  Fig.  25,  as  this  would  prevent 
their  coming  properly  together;  the  width  of  the  emery 
being  less  than  half  of  the  shaft's  circumference  will 
be  a  help  to  this  end. 


FIG.  24. 

It  often  happens,  owing  to  downright  neglect  or 
unwitting  neglect,  through  the  oil  hole  or  oiler  being 
blocked  up,  that  a  loose  pulley,  running  unlubricated, 
cuts,  heats,  and  finally,  through  heat  expansion,  seizes. 
It  then  becomes  necessary  to  take  the  countershaft 


26 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


down,  force  the  loose  pulley  off  and  file  and  polish  the 
shaft  up  before  it  can  be  put  back  into  place. 

c 


FIG.  25. 

The  following  method  avoids  the  taking  down  and 
putting  back,  provides  an  easy  means  for  loosening  up 
the  pulley  that  has  seized,  and  improvises,  as  it  were, 
a  lathe  for  filing  and  polishing  the  shaft. 

n  * 


FIG.  26. 
In  Fig.  26,  A  is  the  loose  pulley  that  has  seized. 


SHAFTING   HINTS 


27 


Throw  off  both  the  belt  that  leads  from  the  main  shaft 
to  pulleys  A,  B  and  the  belt  that  leads  to  the  driven 
machine  from  the  driving  pulley  C.  Tie,  or  get  some- 
body to  hold,  an  iron  bar  in  pulley  A  at  side  a,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  27,  over  an  arm  of  the  pulley,  under  the  shaft, 


FIG.  27. 

and  resting  against  the  timber,  ceiling,  wall  or  floor, 
in  such  a  way  as  to  prevent  the  pulley  from  turning  in 
one  direction,  as  shown  in  Fig.  27.  Now,  with  another 
bar,  of  a  sufficient  length  to  give  you  a  good  leverage, 
take  the  grip  under  a  pulley  arm  and  over  the  shaft 
in  the  tight  pulley  B  at  b,  which  will  enable  you  to  work 
against  the  resistance  of  the  bar  in  the  loose  pulley  A. 
With  enough  leverage,  this  kind  of  persuasion  will 
loosen  the  worst  of  cases.  Take  the  bars  out  and  move 
B  sufficiently  to  the  right  to  allow  A  to  take  B's  former 
position.  Secure  B  by  means  of  its  set-screws  in  its 
new  position  and,  by  means  of  a  piece  of  cord,  fasten 


28  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

an  arm  of  A  to  one  of  B's.  It  is  evident  that  by  throw- 
ing the  main-shaft  belt  on  to  A  it  will,  through  As 
cord  connection  with  B,  which  is  screwed  to  the  shaft, 
cause  the  shaft  to  revolve,  thus  enabling  you  to  file 
up  and  polish  that  portion  of  it  formerly  occupied  by 
A.  To  prevent  the  countershaft  from  side-slipping  out 
of  hanger-bearing  D1,  get  somebody  to  hold  something 
against  hanger-bearing  D2  at  E;  or  fasten  a  piece  of 
wire  or  cord  on  the  countershaft  at  F  and  the  hanger 
D1,  so  as  to  prevent  side-slipping  while  not  interfering 
with  revolution. 

Filing,  polishing,  a  cleaning  out  of  the  oil  hole  or 
oiler,  and  the  taking  of  proper  precaution  against 
future  failure  of  lubrication  will  put  everything  into 
first-class  order.  When  the  loose  pulley  is,  as  it  is  best 
for  it  to  be,  farthest  away  from  the  bearing,  held  in  its 
place  by  the  tight  pulley  and  a  collar,  not  only  is  the 
tight  pulley  better  adapted  for  carrying  its  load,  owing 
to  additional  support  resultant  from  its  proximity 
to  the  bearing,  but  such  matters  of  small  repair  as 
come  up  are  much  simplified. 

Fig.  28  in  some  degree,  aside  from  the  cutting  up  and 

TL 


FIG.  28. 


heating  of  the  bearings,  illustrates  the  breaking  strain, 
in  addition  to  the  usual  torsional  strain,  which  becomes 
enhanced  in  direct  proportion  with  the  increase  of 
breaking  strain,  to  which  an  out-of-line  or  out-of-level 


SHAFTING   HINTS  29 

shaft  is  subject.  The  bends  are  exaggerated  for 
illustration. 

In  this  instance,  the  fact  of  one  hanger-bearing  being 
out  of  line  or  level  subjects  the  shaft  to  a  severe  break- 
ing strain.  The  shaft  being  both  out  of  line  and  level 
does  not,  if  both  at  the  same  point,  aggravate  matters, 
as  might  at  first  be  supposed. 

It  is  true  that  the  full  torsional  strength  of  a  shaft 
is  only  equal  to  the  weakest  portion  of  it,  so  that  three 
weak  spots  more  or  less  can,  theoretically,  make  no 
difference  one  way  or  the  other.  But,  practically, 
there  is  the  undue  strain  and  wear  of  the  bearings  at 
these  points,  and  if  a  pulley  transmitting  any  consid- 
erable amount  of  power  is  situated  anywhere  along  the 
length  A  B  it  is  sure  to  be  unpleasantly  in  evidence  at 
all  times. 

Only  an  eighth  or  a  quarter  out,  but  oh,  what  shaft- 
breaking  stones  that  fraction  could  tell ! 

The  following  is  a  simple  method  for  testing  the  aline- 
ment  and  level  of  a  line  of  shafting  that  is  already  up. 

As  in  Fig.  29,  stretch  a  line  C  so  that  it  is  exactly 


UNE  C 


FIG.  29. 

opposite  the  shafting.  Set  it  equidistant  from  the 
shaft  end  centers  G  and  F  and  free  from  all  contact 
along  its  entire  length  except  at  its  retaining  ends  A  and 


30  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

B.  Now,  it  is  self-evident,  as  line  C  is  straight  and  set 
equidistant  from  the  shaft  end  centers  G  and  F,  that 
if  you  set  the  entire  center  line  of  the  shafting  at  the 
same  distance  from  line  C,  as  G  and  F,  you  are  bound 
to  get  your  shafting  into  perfect  alinement. 

In  leveling  a  line  of  shafting  that  is  already  up, 
you  can,  by  the  use  of  a  level  and  perseverance,  get  it 
right. 

Placing  the  level  at  A,  you  are  just  as  likely  to  raise 
the  first  hanger  as  to  lower  the  middle  one.  Look 
before  you  jump,  even  if  compelled  to  climb  to  the  top 
of  the  fence  to  do  so.  When  you  find  a  length  of  shaft- 
ing out  of  level,  try  the  two  adjacent  lengths  before 
acting,  and  your  action  will  be  the  more  intelligent 
for  it. 

On  exceptionally  long  lines  of  shafting  the  following 
method,  in  which  the  level  and  a  line  constitute  a  check 
upon  and  a  guide  for  each  other,  can  be  used  to  great 
advantage.  Stretch  a  line  so  that  it  is  exactly  above, 
or,  if  more  convenient,  below  the  shafting  to  be  leveled. 
With  the  level  find  a  length  of  shafting  that  is  level 
and  adjust  your  line  exactly  parallel  with  this  length. 
Your  line  now,  free  of  contact  except  at  its  retaining 
ends,  and  level  owing  to  its  parallelism  to  the  level  shaft 
length,  constitutes  a  safe  bight  level  guide  while  the 
level  itself  can  serve  to  verify  the  accuracy  of  the 
finished  job. 

In  lining,  whether  for  level  or  alinement,  unless  the 
shafting  line  consists  of  the  same  diameter  of  shafting 
throughout  its  entire  length,  though  of  necessity  meas- 
uring from  the  shaft  circumference  to  the  line,  always 


SHAFTING   HINTS  31 

base  your  calculations  on  the  shaft  centers.  The 
figures  in  Fig.  29  will  make  this  point  clear. 

The  manner  of  securing  the  ends  of  the  line  under 
different  circumstances  must  be  left  to  individual 
ingenuity.  Only  be  sure  that  the  line  is  so  placed  that 
the  shafting  adjustment  shall  not  affect  its  original 
position  with  reference  to  the  end  shaft  centers. 

Coupling  clutches,  i.e.,  those  joining  two  lengths  of 
shafting  into  one  at  option,  will  fail,  utterly  or  partially, 
if  the  respective  shafts  which  bear  them  are  out  of  line 
or  level  with  each  other.  Such  a  condition  should  not 
be  tolerated  on  account  of  the  danger  entailed  by  the 
inability  to  shut  off  the  power  in  cases  of  emergency. 

As  a  general  rule,  it  is  most  advisable  to  set  a  clutch 
to  take  as  hard  a  grip  as  it  can  without  interfering  with 
its  releasing  power.  Where  a  clutch  grips  weakly, 
it  is  subject  to  undue  wear  owing  to  slippage,  whereas 
a  strongly  regulated  clutch  absolutely  prevents  slip- 
page wear. 


Ill 

SHAFTING    HINTS1 

ENGINEERS,  machinists  and  general  mechanics 
are  often  called  upon  to  turn  their  hands  to  a  shafting 
job.  We  recognize  that  all  of  the  following  cannot 
prove  new  or  even  suggestive  to  most  of  our  readers; 
still,  some  of  it  for  all,  and,  mayhap,  all  for  some,  may 
not  come  amiss. 

We  all  know  that  to  have  belting  run  rightly  on 
pulleys  located  upon  parallel  lines  of  shafting  the 
shafting  must  be  in  absolutely  correct  parallel.  The 
slightest  deviation,  even  to  a  1-16  inch,  often  imparts 
a  marring  effect,  through  poorly  running  belts,  to  an 
otherwise  faultless  job. 

Fig.  30  shows  how  to  line  a  countershaft  as  regards 

A 


FIG.  30. 

parallelism  with  the  driving  shaft  when  the  counter- 
shaft's end-centers  are  availably  situated  for  thus 
measuring.  A  is  the  countershaft,  B  the  main  shaft, 
C  is  a  stick  of  proper  length  about  i  J  inches  in  thickness 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Chas.  Herrman. 
32 


SHAFTING   HINTS 


33 


and  width,  D  a  heavy  nail  —  about  2openny  will  do 
—  driven  into  C  far  enough  from  its  end  E  to  allow  of 
Cs  resting  squarely  upon  the  top  of  the  shaft  B. 

Rest  the  measuring  rod  upon  the  main  shaft,  keeping 
the  nail  in  touch  with  the  shaft,  so  that  when  the  F 
end  is  in  contact  with  the  end  of  the  countershaft  the 
stick  shall  be  at  right  angles  to  the  main  shaft,  and  then 
mark  the  exact  location  a  of  the  countershaft's  end- 
center  on  the  stick.  Do  the  same  at  the  other  end  of  the 
countershaft.  If  both  marks  come  at  the  same  spot, 
your  counter  is  parallel;  if  not,  space  between  these 
two  marks  will  show  you  how  much  and  which  way  the 
counter  is  out. 

It  may  only  be  necessary  to  shift  one  end  in  or  out 
a  little;  and  then,  again,  it  may  be  that  to  get  into  line 
you  will  have  to  throw  one  end  all  the  way  in  one  direc- 
tion and  the  other  all  or  some  in  the  opposite  direction. 
But,  whichever  it  be,  do  not  rest  content  until  you  have 
verified  the  correctness  of  your  adjustment  by  a  re- 
measurement. 

The  nail  should  be  well  driven  into  C,  so  that  its 
position  will  not  readily  change,  and  it  should,  pre- 
ferably, be  slant  driven  (as  shown  in  Fig.  30),  as  it  thus 
helps  to  keep  the  stick  down  in  contact  with  the  shaft. 

Where  an  end-center  is  not  available  or  where  there 
is  no  clear  space  on  the  main  shaft,  opposite  a  center, 
the  method  shown  in  Fig.  3 1  can  generally  be  used. 

Rest  C  on  top  of  both  shafts  and  at  right  angles  to 
the  driving  shaft  B.  With  D  pressed  against  B,  place 
a  square  on  stick  C,  as  shown  (stock  in  full  contact  with 
the  top  of  the  rod,  and  the  tongue  running  down  the 


34 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


side  of  it).  Slide  along  C  toward  A  until  the  side  of 
the  tongue  touches  the  shaft  the  other  side  of  A.  Now 
mark  a  line  on  the  stick  down  tongue.  Do  the  same 
at  the  other  end  of  your  countershaft  and  the  two 
resultant  marks  will  be  your  parallel  adjustment  guides. 

c 


FIG.  31. 

It  often  happens  that  a  counter,  or  even  line  shaft, 
is  end  driven  from  the  extreme  end  of  the  main  or  jack 
driving  shaft  with  its  other  end  running  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  driving  shaft,  as  shown  in  Fig.  32. 


DrtTinjS 


FIG.  32. 

It  is  evident  that  neither  method  i  nor  2  can  here 
be  applied  to  solve  the  alinement  problem.     If  the 


SHAFTING   HINTS  35 

driving  pulley  B  and  the  driven  pulley  A  are  both  in 
place,  the  following  method  can  be  used  to  advantage. 

Fasten,  or  let  somebody  hold,  one  end  of  a  line  against 
pulley  B's  rim  at  B1;  carry  the  line  over  to  A  at  A2; 
now  sweep  the  loose  A2  end  of  the  line  toward  pulley  A 
until  the  line  just  touches  pulley  B's  rim  at  B2.  When 
the  line  so  touches  —  and  it  must  just  barely  touch  or 
the  measurement  is  worthless  —  A1  and  A2  of  pulley  A 
must  be  just  touched  by  or  (if  B  and  A  are  not  of  a  like 
face  width,  as  in  Fig.  32)  equidistant  from  the  line. 

A  single,  two-hanger-supported  length  of  shafting 
thus  lined  is  bound  to  be  in  parallel;  but  where  the  so 
adjusted  shaft  line  consists  of  two  or  more  coupling- 
joined  lengths  supported  by  more  than  two  hangers, 
only  pulley  A's  supporting  portion  of  the  shaft  between 
its  immediate  supporting  hangers  I  and  2  is  sure  to  be 
lined;  the  rest  may  be  more  or  less  out. 

To  make  a  perfect  job,  fix  a  string  in  parallel  with 
shaft  length  I  and  2,  stretching  along  the  entire  length 
of  the  adjusted  shaft,  and  aline  the  rest  of  the  shaft 
length  to  it. 

When  there  are  no  pulleys  in  place  to  go  by,  or  when, 
as  occasionally  happens,  the  wabbly  motion  of  pulley 
B  (when  running)  indicates  that,  having  been  inaccu- 
rately bored  or  bushed,  or  being  located  on  a  sprung 
shaft  length,  its  rim  line  is  not  at  right  angles  to  the 
shaft  line,  the  method  shown  in  Fig.  33  can  be  re- 
sorted to. 

Instead  of  the  nail  used  in  methods  i  and  2,  use  a 
board  about  8  to  12  inches  long  and  of  a  width  equal 
to  considerably  more  than  half  of  shaft  B's  diameter. 


36  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

By  nailing  this  board  x  to  the  measuring  rod  c  at  any 
suitable  angle,  you  will  be  enabled  to  reach  from  the 
end  a  Well  into  the  shaft  B,  as  at  b,  and  from  b'  well  into 
A,  as  a'.  By  keeping  the  board  x  along  its  entire  length 
in  full  contact  with  the  shaft  B  at  both  i  and  2,  the 
angular  position  of  rod  C  is  bound  to  be  the  same  in 
both  instances,  and  you  will  thus  (by  the  use  of  a  square, 
as  in  Fig.  31)  be  enabled  to  aline  A  parallel  with  B. 


\ 


FIG.  33. 

In  all  instances  of  parallel  adjustment  here  cited  it 
is  assumed  that  both  the  alined  and  the  alined-to 
shafts  have  been,  as  to  secure  accuracy  of  result  they 
must  be,  properly  leveled  before  starting  to  aline. 

The  above  methods  apply  to  cases  where  the  shafting 
is  already  in  place.  Where,  however,  shafting  is  being 
newly  installed  before  the  work  can  be  proceeded  with, 
it  is  necessary,  after  determining  on  the  location  for  the 
shafting,  to  get  a  line  on  the  ceiling  in  parallel  with  the 
driving  shaft  to  which  to  work  to.  Mark  that  point  A 
which  you  intend  to  be  the  center  line  for  the  proposed 
shafting  upon  the  ceiling  (Fig.  34). 


SHAFTING  HINTS  37 

Rest  your  measuring  rod  upon  the  driving  shaft  and 
at  right  angles  to  it,  with  the  nail  against  it.  Hold  your 
square  with  the  stock  below  and  the  tongue  against  the 
side  of  the  measuring  stick,  so  that  its  tongue  extremity 
touches  the  ceiling  mark  A,  and  then  mark  a  line  on  the 
rod  along  the  tongue  side  A.  Move  your  rod  along 
the  driving  shaft  to  the  point  where  the  other  end  of 
the  proposed  shafting  line  is  to  be,  and,  squaring  your 
stick  to  the  driving  shaft  with  the  tongue  side  A  on  the 
marked  line  of  the  stick,  mark  your  section  point  on  the 
ceiling.  Draw  a  line  or  stretch  a  string  between  these 
points,  and  you  have  a  true  parallel  to  work  to. 


FIG.  34. 


Owing  to  the  supporting  timber  B's  interference,  a 
square  had  to  be  used;  but  where  the  ceiling  is  clear 
the  rod  can  be  cut  to  proper  length  or  the  nail  be  so 
located  as  to  allow  of  using  the  stick  extremity  C  for  a 
marking  point. 

When  a  pulley  is  handily  situated  on  the  driving 
shaft,  the  method  shown  in  Fig.  35  can  be  used  to 
advantage. 

Let  somebody  hold  one  end  of  a  line  at  I,  and  when 
you  have  got  its  other  end  so  located  on  the  ceiling 
that  the  line  just  touches  the  pulley  rim  at  2,  mark  that 
ceiling  point  (we  will  call  it  3).  In  the  same  way  get 
your  marks  4  and  5,  each  farther  back  than  the  other 


38  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

and,  for  the  better  assurance  of  accuracy,  as  to  just 
touching  at  2,  remove  and  readjust  the  line  separately 
each  time.  If  now  a  straight  line  from  3  to  5  cuts  4, 
your  line  3,4, 5  is  at  right  angles  to  the  driving  shaft  and 
a  line  at  right  angles  to  this  will  be  parallel  to  the  shaft. 


FIG.  35. 

The  plumb-bob  method  is  so  familiar  and,  where  not 
familiar,  so  easily  thought  out  in  its  various  applica- 
tions, that  we  deem  it  useless  to  touch  upon  it. 

The  stringers  or  supporting  timbers  of  drop  hangers 
should  be  equal  in  thickness  to  about  one-fifth  of  the 
hanger  drop. 

Where  the  stringers  run  with  the  hangers  and  cross- 
wise of  the  shaft,  both  feet  of  a  hanger  base  are  bolted  to 
the  same  stringer,  and  this  should  be  from  1}  to  ij 
times  the  width  of  the  widest  portion  of  the  hanger  base. 
As  the  hanger  is  securely  bolted  to  its  stringer,  this 
extra  width  is  in  effect  an  enlargement  of  the  hanger 
base,  and  thus  enables  it  the  better  to  assist  the  shaft's 
end  motion. 

Where  the  stringers  run  with  the  shaft  and  cross- 
wise of  the  hangers,  the  two  feet  of  the  hanger  base  are 
each  fastened  to  a  separate  timber,  and  these  should 


SHAFTING  HINTS 


39 


be  equal  in  width  to  the  length  of  one  hanger  foot,  plus 
twice  the  amount  of  adjustment  (if  there  be  any)  the 
hanger's  supporting  bolt  slots  will  allow  it.  In  reckon- 
ing hanger  adjustment,  be  sure  to  figure  in  the  bolt's 
diameter  and  to  bear  in  mind  that  to  get  the  utmost 
adjustment  for  the  countershaft  the  bolts  should 
originally  be  centered  in  the  slot;  thus  a  ^f  X  ij-inch 
slot,  as  it  calls  for  a  f-inch  bolt,  leaves  a  |-inch  play, 


FIG.  36. 

and  this  play,  with  the  bolt  in  the  center  of  the  slot, 
allows  of  f-inch  adjustment  either  way.  Without  this 
extra  width  addition  any  lateral  adjustment  of  the 
hanger  would  result  in  leaving  a  part  of  the  hanger's 
feet  without  stringer  support.  Such  jobs  look  poorly, 
and  often  run  still  more  poorly.  Fig.  36,  in  its  two 
views,  will  make  the  above  points  clear. 

In   the   stringing  of   countershafts   whose   hangers 
have  no  adjustment  it  often  happens,  despite  all  care 


40  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

in  the  laying  out,  that  they  come  J  to  \  inch  out  of  paral- 
lel. A  very  common  and  likewise  very  dangerous  prac- 
tice at  such  times  is  to  substitute  a  smaller  diameter 
supporting  bolt  instead  of  the  larger  size  for  which  the 
hanger  foot  is  cored  or  drilled,  and  to  make  use  of  the 
play  so  gained  for  adjustment. 

That  shafting  so  carried  does  not  come  down  oftener 
than  it  does  is  due  solely  to  the  foresight  of  the  hanger 
manufacturers.  They,  in  figuring  the  supporting  bolt's 
diameter  as  against  the  strain  and  load  to  be  sustained, 
are  careful  to  provide  an  ample  safety  margin  for  over- 
load, thus  enabling  the  bolt  substituted  to  just  barely 
come  within  the  safety  limit  under  easy  working  con- 
ditions. 

The  largest-sized  bolt  that  a  hanger  will  easily  admit 
should  invariably  be  used,  and  for  alinement  purposes 
either  of  the  following  slower  but  safer  methods  should 
be  used. 

Rebore  the  hanger-supporting  bolt  holes  in  the 
stringers  to  a  larger  size,  and  use  the  play  so  gained  for 
adjustment.  It  is  not  advisable,  however,  to  rebore 
these  holes  any  larger  than  to  one  and  three-quarter 
times  the  diameter  of  the  bolt  to  be  used;  and  the 
diameter  of  the  washers  to  be  used  on  top  of  the 
stringers  should  be  diametrically  equal  to  at  least 
twice  the  size  of  the  rebored  holes.  That  the  washers 
used,  under  such  conditions,  must  be  of  a  good  pro- 
portionate thickness  goes  without  saying. 

When  the  reboring  method  cannot  be  used  —  as 
when  the  hangers  are  carried  by  lag  screws,  lag-bolts, 
bolts  screwed  directly  into  supporting  iron  girders, 


SHAFTING  HINTS 


etc.  —  it  is  evident  that  hanger  adjustment  can  be 
secured  by  packing  down  one  foot  of  the  hanger  base, 
as  shown  in  Fig.  37. 


HANGER    1 
(exaggerated) 


FIG.  37. 

The  piece  of  packing  (necessarily  wedge-shaped) 
between  the  hanger  foot  B  and  the  stringer  A  tilts 
the  bottom  of  the  hanger  forward.  The  size  of  the 
wedge  regulates  the  amount  of  adjustment.  Wedge- 
shaped  space  D,  at  foot  C,  should  also  be  packed  out 
so  as  to  avoid  throwing  undue  strain  upon  C's  ex- 
tremity^ c.  If  now,  the  foot  c  of  the  countershaft's 
other  supporting  hanger  (No.  2)  be  similarly  and  equally 
packed,  as  B  of  No.  i  hanger,  the  shaft  will  have  been 
thrown  forward  at  one  end  and  back  at  the  other,  and 
thus  into  line.  The  equal  division  of  the  adjusting 
wedge  packing  between  the  opposite  feet  of  the  two 
hangers  enables  a  limited  packing  to  do  considerable 
adjusting  without  any  undue  marring  effect;  and, 
further,  insures  the  shaft's  remaining  level,  which  evi- 


42  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

dently  would  not  be  the  case  if  only  one  hanger  were 
packed  down. 

After  so  adjusting,  be  sure  to  get  your  hangers 
squarely  crosswise  of  the  shaft  as  readjusted,  so  that 
the  hanger  bearings  will  lie  in  a  true  line  with  the  shaft 
and  not  bind  it.  At  all  times  be  sure  to  have  your 
hangers  hang  or  stand  plumb  up  and  down;  as,  if  the 
bearings  are  not  so  pivoted  as  to  be  horizontally  self- 
adjusting,  excessive  friction  will  be  the  lot  of  one  end 
of  the  bearing  with  not  even  contact  for  the  rest  of  it. 
The  bearing  being  self-adjusting  all  ways,  square 
crossing  of  the  shaft  line  by  the  hanger  line  and  plumb 
still  remain  eminently  desirable  for  appearance's  sake. 

Before  a  countershaft  can  be  put  up  on  a  ceiling 
whose  supporting  timbers  are  boarded  over,  or  in  a 
modern  fireproof  structure  whose  girders  and  beams 
are  so  bricked  and  plastered  in  as  not  to  show,  it  is 
necessary  to  positively  locate  those  of  them  which 
are  to  carry  the  stringers. 

It  is  in  the  earnest  endeavor  to  properly  locate  these 
that  the  unaccustomed  hand  turns  a  wood  ceiling  into 
a  sieve  and  a  brick  one  into  a  wreck.  To  avoid  kitchen 
and  house  razing  effects,  try  the  following  recipe : 

We  will  assume  that  line  A  B,  Fig.  38,  laid  out  by 
one  of  the  methods  previously  described,  is  the  center 
line  of  the  proposed  countershaft.  The  hanger's  base 
length,  lateral  adjustment  and  individual  foot  length 
call  for  stringers  4!  inches  wide,  placed  5^  inches  apart 
or  14!  inches  outside  (as  per  sketch).  The  floor  position 
of  the  machine  to  be  driven,  or  the  driving  point  of  the 
main  shaft,  is  so  located  with  reference  to  the  counter- 


SHAFTING  HINTS 


43 


shaft  that  one  of  the  supporting  hangers  must  go  at  or 
very  near  C,  and  the  countershaft's  length  brings  the 
other  hanger  at  or  very  near  D. 

Now  between  points  C  D  and  with  due  reference  to 
the  center  line  A  B,  lay  out  the  position  which  your 
stringers  are  to  occupy.  It  is  self-evident  that  by 
confining  your  beam  prospecting  to  the  stringer 
spaces  E  and  Ft  ultimately,  when  the  countershaft  is 
in  place,  all  the  cut-up  portions  of  the  ceiling  will  be 
hidden  from  view. 


I 

" 
i 

! 

\ 

E 

E   i 

H 

..C  

1  —  °"|=  ' 

r:f= 

1 

F 

c 

li 

1 

1 
1 

! 

PLAN 
LOOKING  UP 

1 

' 

-B 


FIG.  38. 

Generally  the  necessary  supporting  beams  will  not 
all  be  found  within  the  shaft's  length  distance  C  D; 
in  such  cases  continue  your  cutting  in  the  same  parallel 
line  to  A  B,  as  at  E  or  F,  going  from  C  D  outwardly 
until  you  strike  the  sought-for  beams.  Having  located 
beams,  say  i  and  2,  we  find  by  measurement  that  they 
are  5  feet  apart,  and,  as  beams  are  generally  uniformly 
spaced,  we  may  start  4  feet  6  inches  (go  4  feet  6  inches 
and  not  5  feet,  to  make  sure  not  to  skip  beam  3  and 


44 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


thus  make  a  cut  that  will  not  be  covered  by  the  string- 
ers) from  i  to  cut  outwardly  for  the  location  of  beam  3. 
Where  the  building's  beams  run  parallel  to  the 
shaft,  Fig.  39,  mark  the  counter's-center  line  A  B,  and 
then  mark  the  spaces  —  as  determined  by  the  counter- 
shaft length,  floor  position  of  the  driven  machine  or  the 
driving  point  on  the  main  shaft  —  to  be  occupied  by 
the  stringers  C  D,  and,  starting  from  the  center  line 
A  B,  cut  outwardly  each  way  to  the  desired  beams 
I  and  2. 


1 

PLAN 
LOOKING  UP 

D 

c 

2 

FIG.  39. 

Where  the  center  line  as  laid  out  (before  the  position 
of  the  ceiling  beams  was  known)  brings  it  close  to  or 
directly  under  a  supporting  beam,  it  is  generally 
advisable  where  possible  to  step  the  counter  back  or 
forward  to  a  central  position  between  the  beams. 

Where  shafting  is  already  in  place  in  a  building,  no 
matter  on  what  floor,  valuable  measurements  as  to 
beam  location  can  thus  be  had  from  the  plainly  in  sight 
and  the  reasonably  deducible.  Lacking  in-place-shaft- 
ing  to  go  by,  the  walls,  columns  and  main  girders  always 
clearly  indicate  the  crosswise  or  parallel  run  of  the 
ceiling  beams  to  the  proposed  shafting  line. 


SHAFTING   HINTS 


45 


In  the  usual  method  of  locating  the  timbers  of  a 
boarded-over  ceiling,  a  brace  and  bit,  or  a  nail,  can  be 
used  for  the  purpose.  If  shy  of  an  awl,  and  in  preference 
the  other  two  ways,  force  or  drive  a  chisel  (cold  chisel 
or  wood)  in  between  a  tongue  and  groove  of  the  ceiling 
boards  in  stringer  space  (Fig.  38)  E  or  F,  and  thus 
spring  the  boards  sufficiently  apart  to  insert  a  compass 
saw.  With  the  extremity  of  a  1 2-inch  saw  a  very  little 
cutting  (along  the  tongue  and  groove,  as  this  shows 
least)  will  enable  you  to  locate  a  beam,  since  they 
generally  run  8,  12,  16,  20,  24  and  30  inches  apart. 

Always,  on  locating  your  beam,  run  the  point  of 
your  compass  saw  down  the  whole  of  the  timber's 
width,  so  that  any  nailed-on  pieces  will  not  lead  you 
into  a  false  estimate  of  the  beam's  thickness. 


FIG.  40. 


FIG.  41. 


Figs.  40  and  41  make  this  point  and  its  object  clear. 
The  saw,  in  Fig.  40,  being  stopped  by  A,  naturally 
leads  to  the  inference  that  A  B  is  the  timber's  thickness. 
By  running  down  the  timber,  as  in  Fig.  41,  the  saw's 
point  sticking  at  a  acts  as  a  sure  detector.  This  pre- 
caution should  be  taken  on  both  sides  (B  and  A]  of 
the  timber,  and  then,  when  the  lags  are  screwed  in, 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


they  can  be  sent  home  safe  and  true  in  the  center  of  the 
timber. 

It  often  happens  that  in  boring  for  the  lag  screws 
the  bit  strikes  a  nail  and  further  progress  at  that  point 
seems  out  of  the  question.  When  so  situated,  take  your 
bit  out,  and  running  the  lag  screw  up  as  far  as  it  will  go, 
by  sheer  force  swing  it  three  or  four  turns  up  further 
than  the  point  where  your  bit  struck.  Removing  the 
lag  and  replacing  the  bit,  it  will  be  found  that  the  nail 
has  been  forced  aside  and  the  way  is  now  clear. 


ELEVATION 


PLAN 


FIG.  42. 

Hook  bolts  (Fig.  42)  or  —  as  our  a cross-t he-sea 
cousins  call  them  —  "elbow  bolts,"  despite  all  asser- 
tions to  the  contrary,  are  an  easy,  safe  and  economical 
stringer  fastener  or  suspending  device. 

Figs.  43  and  44  illustrate  two  very  common  abuses 
of  the  hook  bolt.  In  the  one  (Fig.  43),  instead  of  the 
bolt  proper  lying  snug  up  against  the  beam  flange  with 
the  whole  of  its  hook  resting  squarely  upon  the  beam's 
flange,  its  supporting  countershaft  is  turned  into  a 
menace  to  limb  and  life  by  this  "chance  it"  kind  of 


I   UNIVERSITY    ) 


HINTS 


47 


erection.  In  the  other  (Fig.  44),  though  the  bolts 
do  lie  snug  against  the  flange,  the  hook  being  out  of 
sight  and  no  means  being  provided  for  telling  whether 


FIG.  43. 

the  hook  lies,  as  it  should,  at  right  angles  to  the  Web 
of  the  beam,  even  if  properly  placed  at  installation, 
timber  shrinkage,  vibration  or  a  slight  turn  of  the  bolt 


t  —  ,   ^-V       1        1       1  ^  [   ,  J 

1 

1 

i 

1      1      1 

,  1 

1 

i 

1 

^  1       1  t  —  1  — 

, 

s 

i^r 

2 

LJ_  \ 

1 

>  ! 

FIG.  44. 

when  tightening  the  nut,  all  constitute  dangerous 
factors  tending  to  loosen  or  entirely  loosen  the  hook's 
grip  upon  the  beam  flange. 

Fig.  43  suggests  its  own  remedy.  As  to  Fig.  44,  a 
screwdriver  slot  (made  by  a  hacksaw)  at  the  nut  end 
of  the  hook  bolt  and  running  in  the  same  direction  as 


48  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

the  hook,  Fig.  45,  will  at  all  times  serve  to  indicate  the 
hook's  position  and,  allowing  as  it  does  of  a  combined 
use  of  screwdriver  and  wrench,  it  can  be  used  to  pre- 
vent the  bolt's  turning  when  being  tightened. 


Pins 


Hooks 


Plate 


Beam 


rueam 
Flange 


e 


Plate 


FIG.  45- 


-FiG.  46. 


Where  two  or  more  hook  bolts  are  placed  close  to- 
gether on  the  same  beam  flange,  a  plate,  preferably 
wrought  iron  with  properly  spaced  confining  pins  for 
the  hooks,  may  be  placed  between  the  beam  flange  and 
the  hooks  as  in  Fig.  46.  Its  benefits  are  obvious  and 
so  likewise  is  the  use  of  a  small,  square,  wrought-iron 
plate  with  a  bolt  hole  through  its  center  instead  of 
hook  bolts. 

The  various  styles  of  beam  clamps  carried  by  xthe 
hardware  and  supply  trade  all  have  their  good  points, 
and  though  the  C  of  their  cost  may  seem  to  loom  large, 
it  is  not  a  whit  more  emphatic,  taken  all  in  all,  than 
the  W  of  their  worth. 


IV 

TRUING    UP    LINE    SHAFTING 

IT  is  assumed,  for  the  purposes  of  this  description, 
that  the  modern  style  of  shafting,  increasing  in  diameter 
by  the  i  inch,  is  used,  and  that  all  pulleys  and  belts 
are  in  place.  We  will  take  a  line  composed  of  sizes 
ranging  between  3}!  and  2T7^  inches.  This  gives  us 
four  sizes,  3!!,  3TV,  2}|  and  2/F  inches  in  the  line. 

We  will  first  consider  the  plumb-bob.  The  accom- 
panying sketch,  Fig.  47,  illustrates  a  good  one. 

The  ball  is  i  J  inches  diameter,  and  the  large  end  of 
the  tapered  stem  J  inch  in  diameter,  turned  parallel 
for  a  short  distance  at  the  lower  end.  The  two  thin 
sheet-steel  disks,  i  and  2  inches  in  diameter,  are  drilled 
to  fit  snugly  when  pushed  on  to  the  J-inch  part  of  the 
stem,  and  stay  there  until  pulled  off.  These  disks 
are  turned  true.  This  arrangement  of  plumb-bob  and 
disks  enables  us  to  deal  with  five  sizes  on  one  line,  and 
there  are  not  many  lines  that  contain  more. 

Now  having  our  plumb-bob  ready,  we  will  stretch 
the  line.  The  stretchers  should  be  set  horizontally 
by  nailing  a  strip  of  wood,  say  i  X  ii  X  12  inches,  with 
a  piece  at  each  end  to  form  a  space  between  it  and 
the  wall,  or  place  of  location  in  line  with  the  edge  of  the 
shaft,  as  in  Fig.  48.  The  top  of  this  stretcher  should 

49 


50  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

be  low  enough  to  clear  the  largest  pulley,  and  high 
enough  to  clear  the  hat  of  your  tallest  man.  You 
would  perhaps  find  it  convenient  to  go  between  the 
spokes  of  a  large  pulley. 


FIG.  47. 

Now  having  located  your  stretcher,  find  approxi- 
mately the  position  of  your  line,  and  drive  a  nail  a 
foot  or  more  below  it  in  a  vertical  line,  and  another  nail 
anywhere  for  convenient  winding.  The  advantage 
of  this  plan  is  that  the  line  can  be  easily  adjusted  as  it 


TRUING   UP   LINE  SHAFTING  51 

merely  passes  over  the  stretcher,  and  is  free  to  respond 
to  movement  either  way;  then  when  the  final  adjust- 
ment is  made,  and  is  ready  for  its  final  stretch,  it  is 
only  necessary  to  pinch  the  line  to  the  nail  with  one 
hand,  while  the  other  is  at  liberty  to  unwind,  stretch 
and  rewind  the  line  without  fear  of  its  shifting. 


U 


FIG.  48. 

The  line  being  adjusted  over  the  stretchers,  we  will 
now  proceed  to  set  it.  Begin  at  the  2TVinch  end,  by 
throwing  your  plumb  line  over  the  shaft  and  setting 
your  line  at  that  end,  right  with  the  center  point  of  your 
bob.  Having  done  so,  go  to  the  other  or  3^?  end  of 
your  line,  and  set  the  line  so  that  the  edge  of  the  ball 
of  your  bob  just  touches  it.  Now  go  back  to  the  2T7^ 
end  and  see  that  the  necessary  adjustment  did  not  alter 
it.  Having  proved  this,  give  your  line  the  final  stretch 
and  try  if  it  is  right  at  both  ends.  You  now  have  a 
center  line  (though  the  edge  instead  of  the  center  of  the 


52  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

shaft  is  used)  that  may  remain  up  for  days  if  necessary 
without  fear  of  disturbance. 

It  is  best  to  go  over  the  whole  line  first,  before  dis- 
turbing anything;  so  starting  at  the  first  hanger  at  the 
2TVinch  end,  throw  your  plumb  line  over  the  shaft, 
and  record  on  the  floor  in  chalk  beneath  it  whether  it 
is  O.  K.  or  wants  to  go  either  way,  and  how  much; 
then  go  to  the  next  hanger,  and  so  on  to  the  end.  A 
short  study  of  the  conditions  enables  one  to  correct 
the  faults,  with  a  knowledge  of  the  requirements,  and 
consequently  in  the  least  time  and  with  the  least 
trouble. 

Now  suppose  we  start  at  the  2TVinch  end  to  inspect 
the  line,  we  use  the  center  point  of  the  bob  on  the  line 
so  long  as  we  are  testing  2T7^  inches. 

When  we  get  to  the  2||-inch  part,  which  is  J  inch 
larger,  we  use  the  half  diameter  of  the  stem,  the  edge 
of  which  should  just  touch  the  line. 

When  we  come  to  the  3^-inch  part,  i  inch  larger 
than  2/3-,  we  use  the  i-inch  disk,  slip  it  on  to  the  stem, 
and  when  it  just  touches  the  line  with  its  edge  it  is 
O.  K. 

The  3|f -inch,  being  i  J  inches  larger  than  the2^-inch, 
will  be  right  when  the  ball  of  the  bob  is  in  light  contact 
with  the  line. 

The  2-inch  disk  would  be  suitable  for  the  next  size, 
and  other  disks  or  modifications  of  the  bob  proper 
might  be  made  to  suit  circumstances. 

Now  having  straightened  the  line,  the  next  process 
is  to  level  it.  As  in  some  cases  your  pulleys  will  be 
too  close  to  place  your  level  where  you  want,  make  a 


TRUING   UP   LINE  SHAFTING 


53 


light  iron  frame  as  per  Fig.  49,  making  the  suspending 
members  of  sufficient  length  to  admit  of  your  reading 
the  level  conveniently  when  standing  on  the  floor. 
Hang  your  frame  on  the  shaft,  and  put  your  level  on 
the  straight-edge  below;  in  this  way  travel  along  the 
shaft,  placing  your  frame  where  convenient.  Be  sure 
that  one  end  of  your  frame  does  not  rest  on  a  shaft 
of  different  diameter,  a  key,  keyseat,  or  anything  to 
distort  the  reading. 


H  IN.  SQUARE 


STRAIGHT  EDGE 


FIG.  49. 

Never  be  content  with  trying  your  level,  especially 
an  adjusting  level,  one  way;  always  reverse  it  and  try 
again ;  for  if  it  is  out  of  truth  at  the  start,  you  might 
want  to  go  through  the  roof  or  down  cellar  at  the  finish. 
Get  into  a  habit  of  reversing  your  level,  and  so  prove 
your  work  as  you  proceed. 


APPARATUS    FOR    LEVELING   AND 
LINING   SHAFTING 

THE  first  apparatus  explained  in  this  chapter  was 
designed  by  the  late  Chas.  A.  Bauer,  and  is  a  highly 
perfected  instrument. 

For  those  who  have  lined  and  leveled  shafting  with 
an  engineer's  transit  and  level  it  is  unnecessary  to 
say  anything  of  the  advantages  of  that  method  over 
the  cruder  methods  usually  employed.  It  is  not  only 
done  much  more  rapidly  and  economically;  but  the 
greater  accuracy  with  which  the  work  is  done  goes  on 
paying  dividends  in  decreased  friction  and  loss  of  power 
and  in  lessening  of  wear. 

The  apparatus  we  now  illustrate  (Fig.  50)  has  at 
the  top  a  hook,  which  is  passed  over  the  shaft,  as  in- 
dicated; on  the  straight  portion  of  this  hook  are  two 
sliding  jaws  which  are  so  set  that  the  shaft  will  just 
pass  between  them.  Set  into  the  face  of  this  hook  is 
a  commercial  6-inch  steel  rule  which  facilitates  the 
setting  of  the  jaws,  and  they  are  of  course  so  set  that 
the  tubular  portion  of  the  hook  or  leveling  rod  is  cen- 
tered vertically  under  the  shaft.  Within  the  outer  tube, 
which  is  about  i  inch  outside  diameter  and  nicely 
japanned,  is  another  tube,  and  inside  this  a  third  tube, 

54 


LEVELING   AND   LINING   SHAFTING 


55 


FIG.  50. 


56  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

these  being  arranged  a  la  telescope  slide,  and  clamps 
being  provided  so  that  the  length  or  distance  from  the 
shafting  to  the  target  may  be  anything  desired  from 
4  to  about  10  feet.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  third  or 
inner  tube  is  a  swiveling  head  to  which  the  target  is 
attached,  and  nurled  nuts  at  this  point  give  means  of 
adjusting  the  sighting  point  of  the  target  to  the  exact 
hight  of  the  transit  or  level  sighting  line. 

The  target  is  a  brass  plate  5%  inches  diameter,  on  the 
face  of  which  is  a  recess  milled  for  the  reception  of  a 
second  commercial  steel  rule,  which  in  this  case  is 
vertical  and  can  be  moved  vertically  and  clamped  in 
any  desired  position  with  reference  to  a  line  drawn  upon 
the  target.  At  the  center  of  this  scale  is  a  very  small 
hole  through  which  the  light  of  a  hand  flash  lamp  may 
shine  to  form  the  sighting  point.  The  slot  through  the 
target  at  the  right  of  the  scale  is  provided  with  a  single 
thickness  of  white  cloth,  which  permits  enough  light 
to  pass  through  it  to  help  in  finding  the  target  in  the 
field  of  the  telescope. 

The  object  of  providing  a  vertical  adjustment  for 
the  rule  on  the  target  is  so  that  when  passing  from  one 
diameter  of  shafting  to  another  in  the  same  line,  as 
sometimes  happens,  the  scale  can  be  moved  up  or  down 
just  half  the  difference  of  diameter  and  the  sighting 
point  thus  be  kept  at  a  constant  hight. 

The  target  is  readily  detached  from  the  rod,  and  may 
then  be  placed  upon  the  small  standard  (Fig.  51)  which 
has  at  its  base  a  V  adapted  to  go  over  the  shaft.  The 
standard  is  tubular  and  the  wire  (about  J  inch  diameter) 
may  be  adjusted  and  clamped  at  the  desired  hight.  The 


LEVELING   AND    LINING   SHAFTING 


57 


I 


FIG.  51. 


58  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

« 

target  fits  over  the  wire  as  shown  (rear  view  of  target) 
for  leveling  lines  of  shafting  that  may  be  near  the  floor, 
or,  with  the  target  removed,  the  V  and  wire  form 
a  sort  of  length  gage  or  caliper  with  which  the  shaft 
may  be  made  parallel  to  a  line  or  wire  stretched  at  the 
side  of  it.  Two  different  lengths  of  wire  are  provided 
for  this  purpose. 

The  plumb-bob  shown  is  part  of  the  equipment  and 
is  a  very  superior  article.  A  new  feature  it  possesses 
is  in  having  its  larger  portion  hexagonal  instead  of 
round,  so  when  laid  down  upon  a  plank  or  scaffolding 
it  will  lie  there  instead  of  promptly  rolling  off  and 
falling  to  the  floor.  The  entire  apparatus  is,  we  think, 
very  well  designed  for  its  purpose. 

TOOL  FOR  LEVELING  SHAFTING 

The  instrument  shown  in  Fig.  52  is  a  good  one  for  use 
in  leveling  up  shafting.  It  can  be  made  to  fit  several 
sizes  of  shaft, or  all  the  sizes  ordinarily  found  in  a  factory. 

When  the  instrument  is  placed  on  any  piece  of  shaft 
and  leveled  up  with  the  attached  level,  the  plumb 
line  will  hang  exactly  the  same  distance  from  the 
shaft  center  every  time.  In  this  case  the  distance 
of  line  from  center  is  6  inches. 

A  handy  apparatus  for  use  in  leveling  up  long  lines 
of  shaft  can  be  made  as  follows. 

Take  two  pieces  of  finished  material,  fasten  together 
as  in  Fig.  53  and  cut  out  as  shown  at  A  and  B  in  Fig. 
54.  The  opening  A  is  made  so  that  the  piece  can  be 
hung  over  the  shaft,  and  the  opening  B  is  made  for 
the  reception  of  a  wooden  straight-edge. 


LEVELING  AND  LINING  SHAFTING  59 


FIG.  52. 


FIG.  53.  FIG.  54. 


6o 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


Make  the  straight-edge  out  of  i^-inch  stuff.  Be 
sure  that  the  edges  are  parallel,  the  width  just  enough 
less  than  the  width  of  opening  B,  Fig.  55,  to  enter  it, 


Lei 


Straightedge 


u 


iJ 


FIG.  55. 


and  the  length  6  or  8  feet,  to  suit  convenience.  Use 
the  apparatus  with  a  level,  as  in  Fig.  55,  taking  care 
that  the  suspension  pieces  are  always  on  the  same  size 
shaft. 


VI 


SOME    PRACTICAL    KINKS1 

A  PULLEY  on  one  of  the  motors  at  a  certain  plant 
had  been  giving  some  trouble  by  becoming  loose  and 
working  its  way  along  the  shaft  toward  the  motor 
bearing.  Each  time  the  pulley  became  loose,  the  set- 
screw  was  loosened,  the  pulley  put  back  in  position, 
the  set-screw  made  tight  and  the  motor  started.  After 
a  few  trials  it  was  found  that  this  would  not  prevent 
the  pulley  from  working  its  way  along  the  shaft.  In 
order  to  overcome  this  difficulty  the  pulley  was  placed 


FIG.  56. 

in  its  proper  position,  a  line  was  drawn  around  the 
shaft  close  to  the  hub  and,  after  the  line  was  scribed, 
the  pulley  was  removed  and  the  shaft  was  burred  upon 
the  line  as  shown  at  B,  Fig.  56.  The  pulley  was  then 
put  back  and  driven  close  up  to  the  burred  line,  the 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Wm.  Kavanagh. 
61 


62  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

set-screw  made  tight  and  the  pulley  is  now  running 
without  any  apparent  tendency  to  travel  from  its 
proper  position.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  position  of  the 
set-screw  as  indicated  by  the  line  at  A  is  a  poor  one 
and  calculated  to  give  plenty  of  trouble  at  the  most 
inopportune  time. 

Not  long  ago  a  cast-iron  pulley  had  to  move  along  a 
countershaft  in  order  to  make  room  for  a  pulley  of 
another  diameter.  The  pulley  had  not  been  on  the 
shaft  long,  so  it  was  thought  that  little  work  would  be 
required  to  move  it.  A  heavy  bar  was  placed  against 
the  hub  and  a  sledge  hammer  was  used  to  strike  the 
bar.  After  an  hour  and  a. half  of  heavy  work  the  pulley 
was  not  moved  over  i  inch  (it  had  to  be  moved  16 
inches),  so  it  was  suggested  that  a  Bunsen  burner  be 
attached  to  a  gas  pipe  by  means  of  a  hose  and  placed 
beneath  the  hub.  The  plan  was  immediately  adopted. 
The  burner  was  placed  beneath  the  hub,  the  gas  lit 
and  allowed  to  heat  the  hub.  After  about  twenty-five 
minutes  it  was  found  that  a  blow  from  the  bar  was  suffi- 
cient to  move  the  pulley.  The  pulley  was  moved  the 
1 6  inches  inside  of  twenty  minutes. 


FIG.  57. 

A  very  handy  arrangement  for  moving  pulleys  is 
a  bolt  and  nut.    Fig.  57  shows  the  bolt  and  nut  with 


SOME   PRACTICAL   KINKS 


a  piece  of  pipe  attached.  A  piece  of  pipe  can  be  cut  to 
suit  the  distance  between  the  nut  and  hub  of  one  pulley 
while  the  bolt  head  is  against  the  other  hub.  The  nut 
is  screwed  back  upon  the  bolt  as  far  as  possible.  A 
washer  is  then  placed  against  the  nut,  and  a  piece  of 
pipe  cut  to  suit.  Of  course,  the  pipe  must  be  large 
enough  in  diameter  to  fit  over  the  bolt.  If  we  screw 
back  upon  the  nut,  a  powerful  strain  can  be  brought 
to  bear  between  the  hubs  and  in  all  probability  the 
pulley  will  move. 


FIG.  58. 

In  taking  down  solid  pulleys  from  main  or  counter 
shafting  it  sometimes  happens  that  a  hanger  must  be 
removed  to  permit  the  pulley  to  be  taken  off.  A  first- 
rate  plan  is  to  make  a  couple  of  long  bolts  hooked  at 
the  end  as  shown  in  Fig  58;  pass  the  hook  around  the 
shaft  and  the  threaded  end  through  a  hole  in  the 
stringer.  By  screwing  up  the  nut  as  shown,  the  shaft 


64  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

and  remaining  pulleys  can  be  kept  in  position,  obviating 
the  use  of  tackle,  not  to  mention  the  labor  required  to 
hoist  back  the  shaft  into  position.  The  application 
of  this  contrivance  is  especially  valuable  where  heavy 
cone  pulleys  are  required  to  be  lowered  or  changed. 
It  will  be  seen  that  if  we  employ  a  pipe  thread  we  will 
be  enabled  to  suit  almost  any  condition  of  length  that 
may  arise  between  the  shaft  and  stringer. 


VII 


PRACTICAL   METHODS   OF    LOOSENING 
PULLEYS 

WHEN  a  solid  pulley  is  to  be  removed  from  a  piece 
of  shaft  for  any  reason,  it  is  not  good  policy  to  use 
sledge  hammers  on  the  spokes  or  hub  to  do  it.  Cast 
iron  in  pulleys  is  too  liable  to  break  or  crack  under 
repeated  blows. 

In  Fig.  59  one  ready  method  is  illustrated  by  which 
the  pulley  may  be  removed.  When  a  place  between 
two  walls  can  be  found  that  will  admit  of  this  arrange- 
ment, proceed  as  shown  to  force  the  shaft  through 
the  pulley,  substituting  longer  pieces  of  pipe  as  the 
shaft  is  forced  through  farther. 

In  one  case  where  a  large  pulley  was  stuck  on  a  y-inch 
shaft  and  its  removal  was  imperative,  the  shaft  was 
sawed  off  (with  large  hack-saws)  close  up  to  the  pulley 
hub  and  two  f-inch  holes  were  drilled  into  the  shaft 
parallel  to  its  axis,  as  shown  in  Fig.  60.  These  holes 
were  drilled  so  that  they  were  90  degrees  apart  and 
came  within  -^  inch  of  the  hub  of  the  pulley.  The 
hub  was  14  inches  through  and  these  holes  were  8  inches 
deep;  but  that  was  enough  to  loosen  up  the  shaft 
so  that  when  the  pulley  was  laid  over  on  beams  with 

65 


66 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


METHODS   OF  LOOSENING   PULLEYS  67 

the  shaft  hanging  through,  a  sledge  hammer  applied 
on  the  shaft  end  soon  drove  it  out. 

Another  way  to  remove  a  pulley  is  shown  in  Fig.  61, 
where  a  ram  is  used.  The  ram  is  another  piece  of 
old  shaft.  To  prevent  its  damaging  the  pulley  hub 
and  also  to  have  its  force  applied  most  advantageously, 
it  should  be  used  in  a  direct  line  with  the  direction 
of  removal.  To  do  this,  the  method  shown  in  Fig.  61 
is  self-explanatory. 


FIG.  60. 

Another  good  method  of  removing  an  obdurate 
pulley  is  illustrated  in  Fig.  62,  where  the  bolts  W ',  W 
must  have  long  threads  and  the  work  is  done  by  pulling 
up  on  the  nuts  A,  A.  This  method  can  be  used  only 
when  the  end  of  the  shaft  can  be  reached  and  used  as 
shown.  In  using  this  method,  care  must  be  exercised 


68 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


METHODS   OF   LOOSENING   PULLEYS  69 


1 


BU 


m  &  x 


yo  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

in  the  pulling  up  on  the  bolts  W ,  W ',  keeping  the  strain 
equally  divided  between  the  two  by  pulling  a  little 
at  a  time  on  each. 

If  the  pulley  comes  extra  hard,  it  can  be  assisted 
when  the  strain  is  on  the  bolts  by  striking  at  X  with 
a  sledge. 

A  good  device  for  removing  motor  and  generator 
pulleys  that  are  near  the  shaft  end  is  shown  in  Fig.  63. 
The  arms  Z,  Z  are  adjustable  to  take  hold  of  hub  or 
arms,  and  the  screw  applied  to  the  shaft  center  will  do 
the  rest. 

To  run  a  pulley  off  a  shaft  without  injury  to  the 
hands,  use  a  monkey  wrench  on  the  rim  of  each  pulley, 
as  shown  in  Fig.  64.  One  pulley  on  the  shaft  can  be 
selected  for  a  hold-back;  one  monkey  wrench  there 
will  hold  the  shaft  from  turning,  while  the  other  will 
turn  around  the  shaft  the  pulley  which  it  is  intended 
to  remove. 


METHODS   OF   LOOSENING   PULLEYS  71 


FIG.  63. 


I 


FIG.  64. 


VIII 

SPLICING    LEATHER    BELTS1 

THE  first  thing  is  the  tools  for  the  different  kinds  of 
work.  These  may  be  usually  changed  somewhat  to 
suit  the  taste  of  the  user,  but  in  the  main  the  style 
and  kind  herein  shown  in  attached  drawings  cannot 
be  very  much  improved  upon. 

Figs.  65  and  66  show  a  splice  opener  for  heavy  belts. 
It  is  made  of  J-inch  tool  steel  with  the  point  spread  out 
about  2  inches  wide  and  well  tempered,  after  which  it 
is  ground  to  a  good  sharp  edge,  and  then  an  oil  stone 
run  over  the  edge  until  it  has  been  dulled  so  that  it  will 
not  cut.  The  right  kind  of  an  edge  can  only  be  secured 
by  trying;  it  is  one  of  the  tools  that  is  very  hard  to 
get  just  right.  You  will  notice  that  the  manner  in 
which  this  splitter  is  built  may  seem  to  be  rather  too 
much  work  to  bestow  on  such  a  simple  tool,  but  the 
reasons  for  so  doing  are  as  follows:  in  opening  a  36- 
inch  belt  an  old  splice  opener  that  was  driven  into 
the  handle  like  an  ordinary  file  was  used  and  the 
handle  split;  that  sharp  point  came  back  through  the 
handle,  and  when  it  finally  stopped  it  had  gone  about 
2  inches  into  the  palm  of  the  operator's  hand.  Some 
J-inch  hexagon  steel  was  turned  down  6  inches,  just 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Walter  E.  Dixon,  M.  E. 
72 


SPLICING   LEATHER   BELTS 


73 


74  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

enough  to  round  it  up;  then  a  solid  brass  washer  was 
turned  out  ij  inches  in  diameter  and  i  inch  thick, 
a  hole  bored  through  it  that  was  a  driving  fit  on  the 
piece  of  steel  and  was  driven  down  to  the  shoulder. 
Washers  were  cut  out  of  old  pieces  of  belt  and  put  on 
with  a  liberal  coat  of  glue  on  both  sides;  when  the 
handle  was  filled,  a  steel  washer  which  was  |  inch 
thick  was  screwed  down  hard  on  the  leather  washers, 
and  when  it  had  dried  well  the  whole  was  turned  down 
to  size  shown  in  the  sketch.  Two  of  these  tools  were 
made, 'one  for  belts  up  to  1 8  inches,  and  another  that 
will  reach  through  a  4O-inch  belt.  The  tool  shown  in 


FIG.  67. 

Fig.  67  is  an  ordinary  heavy  screwdriver  with  the  point 
rounded  nicely,  and  it  is  used  to  raise  the  thin  points 
that  the  larger  tool  will  sometimes  tear. 

Fig.  68  shows  a  handle  made  almost  like  the  one  in 


FIG.  68. 

Fig.  65,  with  the  exception  that  the  brass  washer 
referred  to  in  Fig.  65  is  here  turned  down  to  f  inch, 
commencing  J  inch  from  the  large  end,  which  is  i  inch 
in  diameter.  The  leather  washers  are  slipped  on  over 
the  small  part  until  it  is  filled,  and  then  a  washer  is 
screwed  on  the  small  end  and  the  whole  turned  as  shown 


SPLICING   LEATHER   BELTS 


75 


in  the  sketch.  A  hole  that  will  tap  out  f  inch  is  bored 
in  the  large  end  of  the  brass  center,  and  then  tools 
made  with  threaded  ends  on  them  that  will  fit  into  it. 
These  tools  are  made  of  f-inch  tool  steel  with  scraping 
ends,  as  shown.  These  scrapers  are  used  only  for 
removing  glue  that  is  too  hard  and  too  thick  to  be 
removed  by  the  scraper  shown  in  Fig.  69. 

Figs.  69,  6^a  and  6()b  show  views  of  the  only  tool 


FIG.  69. 


FIG.  69  a. 


FIG.  69  b. 


that  is  hardly  worth  being  referred  to  as  a  leather-cut- 
ting tool.  It  is  made  of  a  thin  piece  of  steel,  about  18 
gage,  or  any  old  hand-saw  will  make  the  very  best 
scrapers  that  can  be  secured.  They  should  be  about 
4  inches  square,  perhaps  a  little  smaller,  and  fixed  in  a 
hardwood  handle  (usually  of  hard  maple),  simply  by 
sawing  about  i\  inches  into  the  handle  and  then  driving 
the  blade  in.  The  saw  cut  should  be  just  a  trifle  thinner 
than  the  piece  of  steel.  Should  they  get  loose  from  use, 
a  piece  of  paper  folded  over  the  back  of  the  blade  and 
forced  back  into  the  handle  with  the  blade  will  usually 
tighten  it  all  right. 

This  is  the  tool  that  will  ordinarily  worry  the  novice 
more  than  all  the  rest  to  keep  in  proper  condition. 
Fig.  70  shows  an  exaggerated  view  of  how  the  blade 


76 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


should   look   when    properly   finished.     It   should   be 
hooked  considerably. 


FIG.  70. 

Fig.  71  shows  a  small  steel  for  sharpening  the  scraper 
after  it  is  turned,  and  it  should  be  absolutely  smooth. 


FIG.  71. 

Fig.  72  shows  the  equipment  for  turning  the  edge 
of  the  scrapers.    A  large  three-cornered  file,  about  12 


.72-a 


FIG.  72. 

inches  long,  which  has  all  the  teeth  ground  carefully 
off  of  it  and  then  nicely  polished,  is  fastened  to  a  piece 
of  good  clean  belt  leather  by  means  of  the  staples 
shown. 


SPLICING   LEATHER   BELTS  77 

Fig.  73  shows  the  method  employed  in  turning  the 
edge  of  the  scraper,  which  is  as  follows:  After  the  blade 
has  been  set  firmly  in  the  handle,  grind  the  edge  round- 
ing, as  is  shown  in  Fig.  69;  then  grind  sharp  with  a  good 
long  taper  of  about  |,  and  grind  from  both  sides  just  as 
you  would  an  ordinary  axe.  After  you  have  a  good 
smooth  edge  on  it,  put  it  on  an  oil  or  water  stone  and 
put  as  fine  an  edge  as  possible  on  it,  then  put  on  a 
smooth  piece  of  leather  and  hone  it  down  until  it 
would  shave  you.  You  will  then  have  a  tool  that  will 
do  a  world  of  work  for  you,  "if  you  will  turn  it  right." 


FIG.  73. 

The  method  shown  in  Fig.  73,  if  properly  carried  out, 
will  do  the  trick  for  you;  the  thing  to  be  remembered 
is  that  at  no  time  in  the  turning  of  the  scraper  must 
the  cutting  edge  bear  on  the  smooth  file.  The  first 
position  is  not  shown  right;  the  handle  should  be 
allowed  to  touch  the  file  the  first  few  times  it  is  passed 
over,  and  then  gradually  raise  the  handle  and  keep  on 
passing  the  blade  from  side  to  side,  as  is  shown  in  Fig. 
74;  allowing  it  to  slip  off  on  the  leather  every  time 
you  cross  the  file;  this  is  to  keep  the  corners  in  proper 
shape.  Another  thing  to  remember  is  to  bear  down  on 
the  blade  as  it  is  passed  over  the  file;  you  can't  bear 
too  hard;  the  only  thing  to  look  out  for  is  not  to  raise 


78  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

the  handle  too  fast.  An  ordinary  blade  can  be  turned 
in  about  fifty  strokes  across  the  file.  The  edge  turned 
over  should  be  at  least  TV  inch  long  and  should  be 
well  hooked,  as  is  shown  in  Fig.  73. 


i  ""» —  •"  > 

\      \  74-c    +* 


FIG.  74. 

It  is  well  to  keep  on  hand  about  six  of  these  scrapers, 
and  as  they  get  too  dull  to  cut  leather  use  them  on  glue. 
With  one  good  scraper  that  is  not  too  sharp  all  the  glue 
can  be  cleaned  off  of  both  points  of  a  36-inch  belt  in 
from  five  to  ten  minutes.  When  the  edge  gets  a  trifle 
dull,  use  the  small  steel  on  both  sides  of  the  edge;  first 
wet  the  steel  with  the  lips,  it  makes  a  much  better  edge. 
For  the  benefit  of  beginners  who  may  attempt  to  splice 
a  belt  for  the  first  time,  do  not  use  a  glue  that  will  not 
allow  you  to  remove  the  clamps  and  put  on  the  full 
load  in  forty-five  minutes  after  the  glue  has  been 
applied  and  well  rubbed  down.  The  time  given  here 
applies  only  to  clean  belts  that  are  absolutely  free 
from  all  oils,  and  does  not  include  old  oil-soaked  leather 
that  no  glue  will  ever  dry  on. 

Fig.  75  shows  the  equipment  necessary  to  do  a  good, 
quick  job  on  a  belt,  and  most  of  them  are  required 
to  be  done  quickly  and  well.  With  such  an  outfit  and 
half-dozen  sharp  scrapers  a  joint  in  a  36-inch  belt  can 


SPLICING   LEATHER   BELTS 


79 


be  made  and  run  again  in  four  hours  after  the  engine  is 
stopped.  This  includes  all  the  time  consumed  in  put- 
ting on  and  taking  off  the  clamps,  etc. 


/  Showing  Splicing  Board 
/        Suspended  from  Belt 
'    Screws  by  Four  Hooks. 


jfj7 


78-c 
76-U  iCS2arv76 

FIG.  75. 


The  top  of  the  platform,  j6d,  is  level  with  the  bottom 
of  the  belt  and  is  held  in  position  by  the  hooks,  j6b, 
which  are  shown  in  Figs.  75  and  76.  These  hooks  slip 
over  the  2X4~inch  pieces  that  project  outside  the  plat- 
form to  which  they  are  attached,  and  should  be  made 
of  three-quarter  iron  and  not  too  long,  or  some  diffi- 
culty may  be  experienced  in  getting  them  on  the  two- 
by-fours. 


FIG.  76. 

The  rods  should  be  long  enough  to  take  care  of  the 
longest  possible  splice  and  still  give  plenty  of  room  to 
work.  There  should  be  about  2j  feet  between  the 


8o 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


inside  ends  of  the  threads  and  the  threaded  end  should 
be  3  feet  long.  This  will  make  the  rod  8  feet  6  inches 
long,  and  it  will  be  none  too  long  at  that.  For  instance, 
in  removing  the  glue  from  the  splice,  if  the  last  end 
point  is  very  close  to  the  clamp,  there  will  be  great 
difficulty  in  cleaning  it  and  also  in  fitting  the  leather 
after  the  belt  has  been  shortened.  What  is  meant  by 


FIG.  77. 

the  head  end  splice  is  the  one  that  is  on  the  pulley 
first  —  the  arrows  in  Figs.  77  and  78  will  make  this 
clear:  they  indicate  the  direction  in  which  the  belt 
should  run;  therefore  that  end  of  the  piece  of  leather 


O  A 

FIG.  78. 

that  is  on  the  pulley  first  is  the  head  end  (or  first  end) 
and  the  end  that  leaves  the  pulley  last  is  the  last  end. 
If  the  two  belts  shown  in  the  sketch  were  reversed, 
the  points  would  be  turned  up  by  everything  that 
touched  them;  whereas,  running  in  the  direction  that 
they  do,  everything  that  touches  them  has  a  tendency 
to  rub  them  down. 

We  will  suppose  that  the  belt  shown  in  Fig.  75  had 
a  "first  end"  point  that  opened  on  the  top  of  the  belt 
instead  of  the  bottom  as  this  one  does  (see  left-hand  end 
of  belt  between  the  clamps,  on  the  lower  side);  one 
can  easily  see  how  hard  it  would  be  to  work  if  the  clamp 
were  near  the  point.  There  should  always  be  enough 


SPLICING   LEATHER   BELTS 


81 


room  between  the  clamps  to  allow  the  splicer  to  take 
the  last  end  (which  is  always  the  forked  end),  carry 
it  entirely  over  the  clamp  toward  the  left  in  Fig.  75, 
lay  it  down  on  that  part  of  the  belt  that  is  outside  the 
clamp  and  slip  an  extra  splicing  board  under  it.  Fasten 
the  two  belts  and  splicing  board  all  together  by  means 
of  a  couple  of  8-inch  hand-screws  (of  which  every  belt 
splicer  should  have  at  least  six  or  eight);  then  clean 
and  shape  it  to  suit  the  other  end.  It  can  be  passed 
back  over  the  clamp  from  time  to  time  and  tried  for  a 
fit. 

3"x  4^"Hard  Maple 


-1K-* 


FIG.  79. 

The  proper  mode  of  procedure  in  splicing  a  belt  on 
the  pulleys  is  as  follows:  Decide  on  where  the  belt  is 
to  be  opened,  and  always  open  it  in  the  worst  place 
in  the  belt  for  that  is  the  place  you  certainly  want  to 
fix.  Pay  no  attention  whatever  to  any  former  splicing 
place  that  may  be  in  the  belt,  but  take  it  apart  at  any 
place  where  you  are  sure  repairs  are  actually  necessary. 
First  put  in  the  most  convenient  place  possible  the 
point  that  you  have  decided  to  open  and  then  put  the 


82      SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

clamps  in  position.  If  you  are  sure  that  it  is  going  to 
require  very  hard  pulling  to  get  it  as  tight  as  you  wish, 
take  a  damp  cloth,  moisten  the  inside  of  the  clamps 
and  then  sprinkle  powdered  resin  on  both  upper  and 
lower  clamp.  Put  the  " first  end"  clamp  on  first,  as 
this  is  always  the  easiest  point  to  clean  and  fit;  decide 
how  much  you  will  have  to  take  out,  or  as  near  as 
possible,  measure  off  this  amount  on  the  belt  and  place 
the  clamp  this  distance  plus  about  10  inches  from  the 
" first  end"  point.  This  extra  10  inches  will  give 
you  plenty  of  room  to  clean  the  glue  off  and  also  to 
shorten  up  the  belt  the  right  amount,  for  all  the  shorten- 
ing must  be  done  on  the  "first  end"  point  on  account 
of  the  ease  with  which  the  new  scarf  can  be  made. 

Should  you  try  to  shorten  up  from  the  "last  end" 
point,  by  referring  to  Fig.  78,  you  can  easily  see  the 
amount  of  work  you  would  be  in  for.  There  would  be 
two  thin  ends  to  scarf,  and  outside  ends  at  that;  where- 
as if  you  shorten  up  from  the  "first  end"  you  make  only 
one  thin  end  and  that  one  in  the  inside  of  the  belt. 

The  first  clamp,  with  the  center  mark  of  the  clamp 
coinciding  with  the  center  of  the  belt,  should  be  very 
tight;  for  should  it  slip  when  the  load  is  put  on,  it  will 
very  probably  slip  in  the  middle  of  the  belt  and  may 
not  slip  on  the  edges  at  all.  Should  you  glue  it  in  this 
condition,  the  chances  are  very  much  in  favor  of  the 
outside  edges  giving  away  on  a  heavy  load,  due  to  the 
middle  being  too  long.  After  the  first  clamp  is  in 
position  and  tightened,  put  on  the  second  one  and 
leave  the  bolts  loose,  so  that  it  can  be  slipped  easily. 
Then  put  the  belt  rods  in  position  with  just  a  "full 


SPLICING   LEATHER  BELTS  83 

nut"  on  each  end  and  tighten  the  clamp.  Tighten  the 
rods  enough  to  take  most  of  the  load,  then  get  the  large 
splitter  shown  in  Figs.  65  and  66  and  open  the  joint. 
The  place  to  commence  is  between  X  X  in  Fig.  75; 
this  inclined  point  is  about  4  inches  long  and  must  be 
opened  at  both  ends  of  the  splice  before  the  middle  is 
touched. 

The  tool  should  be  entered  at  O,  in  Fig.  78,  and 
worked  gradually  toward  A;  when  the  point  is  raised 
to  A  clear  across  the  belt,  open  on  down  to  C.  After 
both  ends  of  the  splice  have  been  opened  up  in  this  way, 
proceed  to  open  the  middle,  which  is  now  an  easy  task, 
there  being  no  thin  stock  that  a  separating  tool  will 
pass  through  easily.  After  the  belt  is  entirely  apart 
tighten  up  on  the  rods  until  the  belt  is  the  proper 
tension  and  hang  the  hooks  (76b,  Fig.  75)  on  the  belt 
rods.  Throw  the  two  ends  of  the  belt  back  over  the 
clamp  and  put  the  splicing  board  in  position.  After 
this  is  in  place,  throw  the  two  ends  of  the  belt  back  on 
the  board  and  proceed  to  lay  off  the  scarfs.  To  do 
this,  first  take  a  square  and  get  the  two  thin  points 
perfectly  square,  then  put  the  "first  end"  point  in 
between  them.  This  is  shown  very  clearly  in  Fig.  77, 
the  shaded  end  being  the  last  end.  Of  course  the  "first 
end"  point  at  C,  Fig.  77,  will  have  to  be  cut  of?  before 
the  belt  will  lie  down  properly;  the  amount  to  cut  off 
of  this  end  will  be  just  as  much  as  you  have  shortened 
the  distance  between  the  clamps.  After  the  point  has 
been  cut  to  the  right  length,  take  the  square  and  make 
a  mark  across  the  belt,  using  the  end  of  the  thin  point 
as  your  measure  for  length;  then  without  moving  the 


84  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

belt  make  a  mark  on  the  edge  of  the  belt,  showing  just 
where  the  lower  thin  point  came  on  the  bottom. 
Throw  the  "last  end"  over  the  left-hand  clamp  out  of 
the  way  and  scarf  down  the  top  of  the  "first  end" 
point,  letting  the  scarf  be  about  4  inches  long.  Be 
careful  not  to  gouge  a  hole  in  the  belt  where  the  scarf 
is  started,  but  try  to  make  the  inclined  plane  from  X 
to  X  perfect;  try  to  keep  the  whole  surface  of  this 
incline  true  and  straight.  After  the  short  4-inch  scarf 
is  finished,  clean  the  glue  off  of  the  inside  of  the  "first 
end";  lap  up  to  where  it  enters  the  "  last  end";  then 
turn  it  over  by  bringing  it  over  the  right-hand  clamp, 
place  a  scarfing  board  under  it  and  make  the  scarf 
shown  at  T,  Fig.  75.  Now  clean  all  glue  off  the  "last 
end"  lap  and  take  a  sharp  scraper  like  the  one  shown 
in  Fig.  69  or  6^,b,  place  a  piece  of  glass  under  the 
points  that  have  been  previously  squared  up,  and 
scarf  them  down  to  a  knife-edge. 

After  the  thin  points  are  properly  scarfed,  lay  the 
whole  splice  back  on  the  splicing  board  just  as  it  will 
be  when  it  is  glued,  and  do  any  fitting  that  may  be 
necessary.  Be  very  careful  to  get  it  thin  enough,  or  it 
will  make  a  hammering  noise  when  going  over  the  pul- 
leys. When  scarfing  down  the  thin  points  with  the 
scrapers,  be  sure  that  they  are  very  sharp;  if  not, 
they  will  tear  the  point  off  when  it  gets  down  to  an 
edge;  also  give  the  blade  a  drawing  motion  in  order 
to  facilitate  cutting.  It  may  seem  to  the  novice  that 
to  use  a  piece  of  glass  to  scarf  on,  when  one  is  using  a 
tool  with  a  razor  edge,  is  a  trifle  inconsistent,  but  it  is 
not  so  in  the  least ;  if  the  blade  is  held  well  back  at  the 


SPLICING  LEATHER  BELTS  85 

top  and  a  considerable  pressure  applied  to  it,  there  will 
be  no  danger  in  the  edge  actually  touching  the  glass; 
the  edge  is  turned  past  a  right-angular  position,  or 
hooked,  and  the  heel  is  all  that  touches  the  glass.  A 
good  piece  of  plate  glass  about  12X18  inches  is  large 
enough  for  any  width  of  belt,  although  a  piece  much 
smaller  will  do  all  right.  Do  not  attempt  to  do  any 
scarfing  on  the  board  y6d,  for  if  you  do  it  will  be  so  full 
of  holes  that  have  been  gouged  by  the  scraper  that  it 
will  be  ruined  for  any  purpose. 

This  board  must  be  kept  smooth  in  order  to  be  able 
to  do  a  good  job  of  rubbing  down  when  gluing.  Never 
hammer  a  glue  joint  in  order  to  set  it;  it  is  just  that 
much  unnecessary  work  and  does  absolutely  no  good; 
simply  get  a  smooth  block  of  wood  2X6x8  inches  and 
rub  hard  and  fast  as  soon  as  the  glue  is  applied.  Do 
not  try  to  glue  more  than  6  inches  in  length  at  one  time. 
Use  a  heavy  brush  —  a  high-priced  paint  brush  is  the 
best;  the  regular  glue  brush  is  about  the  only  thing  in 
existence  that  will  not  put  on  any  glue  at  all  —  about 
a  3-inch  brush  is  the  thing;  have  the  glue  just  as  hot 
as  it  is  possible  to  get  it.  Keep  the  brush  in  the  pot  all 
the  time  the  glue  is  heating;  also  have  a  strong  stick 
made  somewhat  like  a  three-cornered  file,  only  larger, 
in  the  glue  —  this  last  is  used  to  scrape  off  the  brush 
all  the  glue  that  it  is  possible  to  get  off  without  allowing 
the  glue  to  get  too  cold.  When  you  take  the  brush  out 
of  the  pot,  work  fast;  get  all  the  glue  possible  off  the 
brush  and  get  the  rest  on  the  belt  at  once.  Make  two 
or  three  fast  strokes  across  the  belt  and  close  down  the 
splice  and  rub  for  dear  life.  After  the  first  brushful 


86  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

has  been  applied  (and  rubbed  for  about  two  minutes), 
have  an  assistant  raise  the  point  up  until  you  can  see 
the  glue  breaking  all  across  the  whole  width  of  the  belt. 
Then  have  a  second  brush  ready  and  repeat  the  former 
process,  with  the  exception  that  you  need  not  apply 
the  glue  to  both  sides  of  the  leather  as  in  the  first  case; 
for  if  you  will  keep  the  brush  down  in  the  fork  between 
the  two  laps  you  will  give  both  sides  a  coat,  and  in 
addition  to  the  time  saved  by  using  this  method  you 
will  get  the  joint  closed  while  the  glue  is  hot.  As  fast 
as  you  go  across  the  belt  with  the  brush,  have  the 
assistant  roll  the  belt  together  after  you;  when  you 
have  used  all  the  glue  out  of  the  brush,  the  joint  is 
closed  and  ready  to  rub.  You  will  keep  the  glue  much 
hotter  by  immediately  closing  the  splice  after  the 
brush,  and  there  is  nothing  else  so  important  as  using 
hot  glue;  as  soon  as  it  commences  to  get  shiny  on  the 
surface  the  thing  is  all  off  and  it  will  not  hold  anything. 
You  cannot  do  any  quick  work  with  water  in  your 
glue  —  that  is,,  unless  it  is  old  and  has  been  heated  up 
several  times.  If  this  is  the  case,  it  will  have  to  be 
thinned  with  water.  The  proper  consistency  is  about 
that  of  a  very  heavy  grade  of  cylinder  oil ;  if  it  is  too 
thin,  it  will  not  dry  in  any  reasonable  time  and  it  will 
also  cause  pockets  in  the  splice  by  opening  up  after  the 
joint  has  been  rubbed,  and  the  air  in  the  pockets  will 
open  the  whole  splice.  In  important  work  never  use  a 
glue  that  will  not  stick  so  tightly  between  every  ap- 
plication belt  that  after  rubbing  down  you  can  give  it 
a  good,  hard  pull  without  its  opening  up.  In  all  state- 
ments regarding  the  time  necessary  for  the  joint  to  dry, 


SPLICING   LEATHER  BELTS  87 

the  belts  are  considered  absolutely  clean,  dry  and  free 
from  all  oils. 

The  most  disagreeable  portion  ot  the  belt  repairer's 
work  is  the  splicing  and  repairing  of  oil-soaked  belts. 
It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  the  action  of  oil  and  that 
of  glue  are  in  direct  opposition  to  each  other:  the  oil 
prevents  sticking  and  the  glue  sticks,  if  it  has  a  chance. 
Such  being  the  case,  the  first  thing  to  do  is  to  eliminate 
the  oil  completely,  and  the  efficiency  of  your  joint  will 
be  in  direct  proportion  to  your  success  in  getting  rid 
of  the  oil.  To  this  end  secure  a  large  gasoline  blow 
torch,  such  as  painters  use  to  burn  off  old  paint.  If 
you  are  not  used  to  it,  be  very  careful;  at  all  events, 
have  a  bucket  of  dry  sand  to  use  in  case  of  trouble. 
Just  throw  the  sand  on  the  fire  and  the  fire  will  go  out 
-  that  is,  if  you  can  get  the  sand  in  the  right  place. 

The  torch  is  to  be  used  after  the  splice  has  been  all 
completed  except  the  thin  points.  The  flame  will  burn 
them  if  finished,  so  leave  them  tolerably  thick  until 
after  the  oil  has  been  removed;  then  finish  them  as 
directed  before.  When  the  scarfs  have  been  made  and 
the  old  glue  has  been  removed,  turn  the  flame  (which 
should  be  an  almost  invisible  blue  if  the  torch  is  work- 
ing properly)  directly  on  the  leather  and  move  it 
over  all  the  surface  of  the  splice  until  the  leather  has 
become  thoroughly  heated;  never  allow  the  flame 
to  remain  directed  at  any  point  long  enough  to  make 
the  oil  in  the  leather  boil.  If  you  do,  the  belt  is  burned. 
Continue  to  move  the  flame  over  the  surface  of  the  belt 
until  the  leather  is  so  hot  that  the  hand  can  scarcely 
be  held  on  it.  With  one  of  the  scrapers  shown  in  Figs. 


88  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

69  and  (k)b  (6cjb  preferred)  scrape  the  oil  off  as  the 
heat  raises  it  up.  Turn  the  cutting  edge  of  the  scraper 
up  and  wipe  the  oil  off  after  every  stroke;  keep  the 
scraping  process  going  right  on  after  the  torch;  never 
allow  the  leather  to  cool  off  until  you  can  get  practi- 
cally no  oil  and  the  leather  begins  to  turn  brown.  By 
heating  the  leather  and  bringing  the  oil  to  the  surface 
you  do  just  what  the  glue  does  when  you  put  it  on  an 
oil-soaked  belt  without  removing  the  oil.  By  means  of 
the  heat  contained  in  it,  it  brings  up  all  the  oil  near 
the  surface  to  which  it  is  applied  and  in  consequence 
does  not  take  any  hold  on  the  leather. 

It  will  take  two  men  with  all  the  necessary  tools  and 
appliances  at  least  six  hours  of  good  hard  work  to 
remove  the  oil  from  a  well-soaked  36-inch  belt  —  that 
is,  to  remove  it  to  an  extent  sufficient  to  warrant  the 
gluing  of  it. 

In  case  of  overflows  in  which  the  wheel  pits  are  liable 
to  be  filled  with  water,  pour  cylinder  oil  on  all  belts 
that  are  liable  to  get  wet  and  then  remove  them  from 
pulleys  if  they  will  be  covered  for  more  than  twenty- 
four  hours,  clean  them  with  gasoline  and  they  will  be 
found  to  be  all  right  and  dry. 

Hold  a  clean  piece  of  waste  against  all  belts  at  least 
twice  every  twenty  hours,  and  wipe  them  clean. 


IX 


THE   CARE   AND    MANAGEMENT   OF 
LEATHER    BELTS1 

OUTSIDE  of  the  direct  care  and  management  of  high- 
pressure  boilers  and  the  steam  lines  pertaining  thereto, 
there  is  no  other  part  of  a  power  or  lighting  plant,  mill 
or  factory  in  which  a  large  number  of  indirect  connected 
machines  are  used  that  is  of  such  vital  importance  as 
leather  belting  and  rope  drives.  The  subject  under  dis- 
cussion in  this  chapter  will  be  the  former,  and  the  selec- 
tion, care  and  management  thereof. 

The  first  thing  in  order  will  be  the  selection  of  a 
leather  belt,  and  when  we  consider  that  all  makers  make 
good  belts,  that  there  are  no  particular  secrets  in  the 
belt-making  business,  and  that  in  order  to  get  the  very 
best  we  must  take  every  advantage  of  all  small  details 
in  construction,  it  stands  every  engineer  and  belt  user 
in  hand  to  get  all  the  information  available;  for  we 
must  remember  that  the  percentage  of  good  hides 
does  not  run  very  high,  that  all  that  are  bought  go  into 
belt  stock  of  some  kind  or  other,  and  that  some  one 
must  buy  the  goods  that  are  not  quite  up  to  the 
standard  of  belt  excellence.  It  is  very  evident  that  no 
man  wants  anything  but  the  best  when  he  is  paying 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Walter  E.  Dixon,  M.  E. 
89 


9o  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

for  the  best,  and  it  is  also  evident  that  no  maker  is 
going  to  say  that  he  makes  inferior  goods;  so  therefore 
.we  must  read  the  quality  by  what  is  in  sight,  and  in 
the  judging  of  leather  that  is  already  made  up,  the 
proposition  resolves  itself  into  a  very  hard  one. 

The  two  principal  things  left  for  an  opinion  to  be 
based  upon  as  to  quality  are  the  relation  the  pieces 
that  constitute  the  laps  bear  to  the  hide  from  which 
they  were  cut.  They  should,  in  belts  running  from 
1 8  to  36  inches,  be  cut  from  the  center  of  the  hides,  or 
should  be  what  is  known  as  "center  stock."  Of  course 
all  belts  should  be  "center  stock,"  but  where  they  are 
very  narrow  or  so  wide  that  one  hide  will  not  be  wide 
enough  to  make  a  lap,  then  there  is  always  a  lot  of 
narrow  stock  worked  in  that  cannot  always  be  strictly 
center.  The  next  thing  to  look  out  for  is  brands  that 
are  so  deep  that  they  destroy  the  life  of  the  leather  and 
will  cause  it  to  break  after  being  used.  Then  look  out 
for  the  length  of  lap.  If  this  is  too  long,  you  will  know 
that  it  runs  into  the  neck,  for  about  all  that  it  is  possible 
to  get  out  of  average  hides  and  still  leave  nothing  in 
that  is  not  first  class  is  54  or  56  inches.  Ordinarily, 
you  can  tell  if  a  lap  is  "center  stock"  by  the  marks  that 
run  down  either  side  of  the  back  bone;  they  will  be 
usually  a  little  darker  than  the  rest  of  the  belt.  These 
marks  or  streaks  should  be  in  the  center  of  the  belt. 
The  principal  objection  to  neck  leather  is  that  it  is 
liable  to  stretch  excessively,  and  on  this  account  it  will 
put  too  much  load  on  the  piece  immediately  opposite 
it  in  a  double-ply  belt;  for  the  point  of  one  side  is  in  the 
middle  of  the  lap  on  the  other  side.  Next  look  out  for 


MANAGEMENT  OF  LEATHER  BELTS  91 

holes,  which  will  usually  be  found  so  nicely  plugged 
as  to  escape  detection  unless  subjected  to  the  most  care- 
ful examination. 

Next  in  importance  is  to  buy  a  belt  that  has  already 
been  filled  with  some  good  waterproof  dressing.  It  is 
quite  likely  that  to  buy  a  belt  that  has  been  filled  means 
to  buy  one  that  perhaps  has  some  bad  leather  in  it  that 
would  be  seen  in  a  dry  oak  tan  belt,  and  also  that  the 
adhesive  power  of  the  filled  belt  is  not  quite  equal  to 
the  dry  one;  but  the  points  that  the  filled  one  possesses 
over  the  one  not  filled  are,  first  and  mainly,  "it  is  filled 
when  you  buy  it  with  a  preparation  that  does  not 
injure  the  leather  in  the  least,"  and  the  preparation 
you  will  fill  it  with,  for  it  will  be  filled,  will  be  engine 
oil  and  water,  a  combination  that  will  ruin  any  belt 
made  and  also  get  it  in  six  months  into  a  condition 
that  will  make  a  permanent  repair  with  glue  impossible, 
for  machine  oil  and  moisture  are  strangers  to  glue  and 
will  ever  be.  More  good  belts  are  ruined  by  being 
soaked  with  engine  oil  until  the  points  come  loose  and 
then  pulled  out  of  shape  than  from  any  other  cause.  Of 
course  you  may  be  able  to  keep  a  main  engine  belt  that 
runs  through  a  damp  wheel  pit  and  basement,  and 
through  a  long  damp  tunnel  to  a  main  driven  pulley 
that  has  two  big  boxes  that  are  just  as  close  to  the 
pulley  as  a  first-class  machine  designer  could  put  them, 
and  never  get  a  drop  of  oil  or  water  on  it.  But  this  is 
not  likely. 

One  very  common  cause  of  trouble  with  engine  belts 
is  the  fact  that  such  belts  usually  run  under  the  floor, 
where  there  is  considerable  moisture.  Then  the  oil 


92  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

table  under  the  average  large  Corliss  engine  will  leak 
around  dash-pots  and  rocker-arm  shafts,  and  some  oil 
will  fly  from  the  eccentric  oil  cups,  get  into  the  wheel, 
run  around  the  rim  and  get  to  the  belt;  if  the  belt  is 
not  filled  a  very  few  drops  of  oil  will  make  a  large  spot 
on  it.  Then,  if  an  engine  does  not  run  the  whole 
twenty-four  hours,  while  it  is  off,  watch.  A  few  drops 
of  water  from  a  leaky  valve  stem  whose  bonnet  drain  is 
stopped  up,  as  it  will  sometimes  be,  has  a  way  of  getting 
through  the  floor  and  falling  on  to  the  belt  and  running 
down  the  inclined  inside  of  it  until  it  finally  comes 
to  the  flywheel,  which,  with  the  assistance  of  its  crown- 
ing face,  very  kindly  makes  a  nice  pocket  for  said  water 
and  proceeds  to  drink  it  up.  Result:  the  glue  is 
loosened  and  the  belt  may  come  apart  in  consequence. 
Should  there  chance  to  be  a  point  just  at  the  bottom 
of  this  pocket,  it  will  get  the  glue  soft  enough  to  slip 
but  may  not  open  up,  which  is  much  worse  than  if  it 
did  open  up;  for  it  may  slip  away  from  the  shoulder 
of  the  splice  for  half  an  inch,  and  when  the  engine 
is  put  to  work  it  may  close  down  by  running  under  the 
wheel  and  stick.  IIP  it  does,  the  result  is  that  at  no 
very  distant  day  you  will  find  a  break  at  that  particular 
place,  right  across  the  face  of  the  belt.  The  reason  is 
that  the  load  was  all  taken  off  the  inside  half  of  the 
belt  by  point  slipping,  thereby  making  the  inside  of  the 
belt  too  long  and  putting  all  the  load  on  the  outside. 
The  outside  will  continue  to  do  all  the  work  until  it 
stretches  enough  to  bring  the  inside  back  into  service 
again.  During  this  week  or  month  you  have  been 
pulling  your  load  with  a  single  belt,  not  a  double  one, 


MANAGEMENT   OF   LEATHER   BELTS  93 

and  after  a  short  time  you  will  find  the  break  referred 
to  above  in  the  shape  of  a  clean,  well-defined  crack 
extending  across  the  belt  parallel  with  the  points  of 
the  laps.  Now  of  course  you  are  going  to  send  for  the 
man  who  sold  you  the  belt  and  ask  him  to  fix  it.  If  he 
is  a  wise  man  and  understands  his  business,  he  won't 
do  a  thing  but  show  you  right  under  that  crack  a  point 
that  does  not  come  up  to  where  it  should  come.  Then 
the  thing  for  you  to  do  is  to  say  to  him  that  the  belt  is 
examined  every  time  it  is  put  into  service  and  that  you 
have  noticed  that  the  points  he  refers  to  all  come  loose 
during  a  "run,"  that  anyone  knows  that  a  few  drops 
of  water  would  not  take  any  belt  to  pieces  while  it 
was  running,  and  if  it  was  water,  why  did  it  not  take 
it  apart  everywhere,  etc?  And  finally  crush  him  com- 
pletely by  telling  him  that  your  men  have  no  time  to  put 
a  pair  of  clamps  on  a  belt  in  order  to  pull  back  into  its 
proper  position  every  point  that  comes  loose;  that  if 
theyclid  do  it  they  would  have  no  time  for  anything  else, 
especially  in  the  present  case,  and  that  if  his  people 
had  made  the  belt  right  the  glue  would  have  held,  any- 
way. 

After  he  has  given  you  a  new  belt  or  repaired  your 
old  one,  just  take  my  advice  and  box  that  flywheel  up 
above  the  top  of  the  eccentric  oil  cup,  at  least  12  inches, 
and  get  some  good,  heavy  tin  or  zinc  and  put  a  tight 
roof  over  the  belt,  under  the  floor. 

First  put  in  a  ridge  pole  out  of  i^-inch  pipe,  starting 
at  the  face  of  the  wheel  and  running  in  the  direction  of 
the  main  driven  pulley,  holding  it  firmly  in  place  at 
each  end  with  a  strong  iron  clamp.  Then  solder  into 


94  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

each  edge  of  the  strip  of  tin,  which  should  be  long 
enough  to  reach  beyond  any  possible  leak  through  the 
floor  or  oil  table,  a  piece  of  ^-inch  pipe,  and  put  the  tin 
over  the  ridge  pole  with  a  piece  of  small  pipe  on  either 
side.  Ordinarily  the  belt  goes  out  past  the  cylinder; 
if  it  runs  through  a  bricked-up  runway  on  its  route 
to  the  main  driven  pulley,  just  fasten  the  two  pieces 
of  ^-inch  pipe  to  either  wall  and  have  the  ridge  about  6 
inches  higher  than  the  outside  ones.  Then  every  drop 
of  oil  or  water  that  comes  through  the  floor  will  fall 
on  to  the  roof  and  run  down  to  the  walls  and  be  carried 
down  to  the  floor  of  the  pit  and  have  no  chance  to 
touch  the  belt. 

One  of  the  most  difficult  things  in  the  operation  of 
large  stations  where  a  large  number  of  belts  are  used  is 
to  keep  them  thoroughly  clean  and  free  from  moisture 
and  machine  oil,  the  latter  especially.  One  very  hard 
problem  that  confronts  all  designers  of  machinery  is 
the  prevention  of  oil  leakage  from  boxes.  In  several 
plants  with  as  many  as  six  dynamos  of  the  same  kind 
and  the  same  design,  at  least  four  of  the  six  have  leaked 
oil  every  time  they  were  run.  The  others  did  not  leak 
as  a  usual  thing,  and  all  were  equipped  with  the  most 
modern  methods  of  holding  oil. 

Now  we  come  to  the  building  of  the  belt,  and  we  will 
notice  only  such  points  as  interest  the  engineer  or  buyer. 
The  first  thing  is  to  see  that  the  laps  are  of  uniform 
thickness,  so  that  the  belt  will  run  quietly;  and  it 
should  be  absolutely  straight  when  unrolled  on  the  floor. 
If  it  has  a  long,  graceful  curve  in  it,  look  out;  for  it  will 
not  run  straight  on  the  pulleys  until  it  has  stretched 


MANAGEMENT   OF   LEATHER   BELTS  95 

straight,  and  by  that  time  one  of  its  edges  may  be 
ruined  by  coming  in  contact  with  the  floor  or  some 
other  obstacle.  Next  notice  how  long  the  leather  is 
from  which  it  is  made.  It  should  not  show  more  than 
52  inches,  and  then  there  will  be  4  inches  hidden  by 
the  point  that  is  out  of  sight.  Then  see  that  the  joints 
are  broken  properly.  For  instance,  find  the  center  of 
any  piece  of  leather  on  one  side  of  the  belt,  and  then 
look  on  the  opposite  side  and  see  if  the  joint  is  right 
under  your  center  mark.  It  should  be  by  all  means, 
for  right  here  lies  the  most  important  thing  about  the 
construction  of  leather  belts.  A  belt  whose  laps  are 
all  the  same  length,  and  which  has  all  its  joints  broken 
correctly,  will  put  the  same  load  on  the  glue  through- 
out, and  that  is  what  must  be  done  in  order  to  get 
the  best  results.  See  Fig.  80.  Here  we  have  a  belt 


FIG.  80. 

that  is  36  inches  in  width  and  a  double  ply.  Now 
suppose  there  is  a  draft  of  9360  pounds  on  this  belt, 
that  from  point  A  to  point  B  is  26  inches,  and  that 
the  points  are  4  inches  long.  Now  we  have  26  inches 
plus  4  inches  plus  4  inches  times  36  inches  for  the 
number  of  square  inches  in  the  glued  joint.  This 
equals  1224  square  inches;  the  total  pull  on  the  belt 
divided  by  1224  will  equal  the  load  on  each  square 
inch  of  glued  joint,  and  will  equal  in  this  case  7.65 


96  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

pounds.  Now  instead  of  assuming  distance  A  —  B 
in  Fig.  80  to  be  26  inches,  let  the  lower  joint  get  out 
of  step  with  the  upper  ones,  and  conditions  get  vastly 
different.  We  will  suppose  that  the  dimensions  are  as 
given  in  Fig.  81,  as  was  the  case  with  a  new  belt  that 
was  measured  less  than  one  month  before  the  observa- 
tion was  made  and  we  have  the  following:  Joint  A  B 
is  now  only  10  inches,  and  we  have  10  inches  plus  4 
inches  plus  4  inches  times  36  inches  which  equals  648 
square  inches,  and  the  lead  on  the  joint  is  now  14.44 
pounds.  You  will  readily  perceive  what  an  important 


FIG.  Si. 

part  in  the  life  of  the  belt,  and  the  life  of  everything 
around  the  belt  as  far  as  that  goes,  the  proper  breaking 
of  the  upper  and  lower  joints  is.  Of  course  the  belt 
maker  will  tell  you  that  his  glue  is  just  as  strong  as  the 
leather  itself,  and  he  is  about  right  as  long  as  you  keep 
the  belt  free  from  oil  and  water;  but  when  the  belt  be- 
comes filled  with  oil  the  glue  rots  and  loses  its  strength 
much  faster  than  does  the  leather. 

No  good  belt  needs  any  posts  along  the  sides  to  make 
it  run  straight  and  stay  on  the  pulleys.  If  the  pulleys 
are  in  line  and  the  belt  straight,  it  will  run  straight. 
All  belts  should  be  made  to  run  perfectly  straight  on 
pulleys,  first  on  account  of  the  local  advertisement 
that  it  gives  to  the  man  who  has  charge  of  them; 


MANAGEMENT   OF   LEATHER   BELTS  97 

second,  if  they  do  not  run  true,  they  will  be  on  the  floor 
or  wrapped  around  the  shaft  in  a  very  few  minutes, 
should  they  ever  slip.  Another  very  important  thing  in 
the  care  of  belts  that  carry  heavy  loads  is  that  if  any  of 
the  points  do  come  loose  so  far  back  that  they  will  not 
return  to  place  without  putting  on  the  clamps,  put  them 
on  by  all  means;  as  the  restoring  of  this  point  to  place 
means  that  you  will  still  retain  in  service  all  of  your 
belt,  as  you  will  not  do  if  you  glue  it  down  where  it  is 
and  thereby  cut  one  side  completely  out  of  service. 

How  TO  CLEAN  BELTING 

We  submit  the  following  as  the  best  and  proper  way 
of  cleaning  a  leather  belt.  It  may  seem  simple,  but  it 
is  safe  and  effective,  as  has  been  proved  by  many  people 
who  have  thus  restored  old  and  dirty  belting  which 
had  become  almost  or  quite  unfit  for  use. 

Coil  the  belt  loosely  and  place  it  on  edge  in  a  tank 
in  which  it  may  be  covered  with  naphtha ;  a  half  barrel 
makes  a  good  receptacle,  but  something  with  a  tight 
cover  would  save  the  loss  by  evaporation.  Put  in 
enough  naphtha  to  cover  the  belt  completely  and  allow 
it  to  remain  for  ten  or  twelve  hours;  then  turn  the  belt 
over,  standing  it  upon  the  other  edge.  The  vertical 
position  of  the  belt  surfaces  allows  the  dirt  to  settle 
to  the  bottom  of  the  receptacle  as  it  is  washed  out, 
and  permits  naphtha  to  get  at  all  the  parts. 

After  the  belt  has  remained  in  the  naphtha  another 
ten  or  twelve  hours,  or  until  sufficiently  clean,  raise  it 
and  allow  the  naphtha  to  drip  back  into  the  tank.  Then 
lay  the  belt  flat,  stretching  or  shaking  it  until  almost 


98  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

dry.  You  will  find  that  the  naphtha  will  not  affect  the 
leather  nor  the  cement  in  the  center  of  the  belt,  but  may 
open  the  joints  at  the  edges;  in  which  case  the  old 
cement  should  be  scraped  off  and  the  edges  recemented. 
Your  belt  man  will  know  how  to  do  this.  The  belt  will 
now  be  somewhat  hard,  and  should  be  treated  with  a 
reliable  belt  dressing  before  being  replaced  on  the 
pulleys. 


BELTING,    ITS    USE   AND   ABUSE1 

THERE  is  no  class  of  appliances  so  little  understood 
by  the  ordinary  steam  engineer  and  steam  user  as  belts, 
which  may  be  seen  by  the  quantity  of  belting  sold  an- 
nually. Where  one  can  point  to  a  belt  that  has  been  in 
continuous  use  for  twenty  years,  you  can  find  hundreds 
that  do  not  last  one-fourth  as  long.  Why?  Not  always 
because  the  buyer  has  tried  to  get  something  for  noth- 
ing, but  as  a  rule,  when  they  do,  they  get  nothing  for 
something. 

The  average  belt  is  a  poor  one,  and  the  average 
buyer  will  not  find  it  out  till  he  has  used  it  for  some 
time.  If  you  weigh  the  belt  dealer  up  as  a  man  who 
is  trying  to  rob  you,  beat  him  down  in  price,  then  get 
him  to  give  from  5  to  40  per  cent,  off,  he  will  enter 
a  protest,  and,  after  some  explanation,  will  come  to 
some  terms  with  you.  Have  you  gained  anything  by 
your  cleverness?  Well,  hardly.  Belt  dealers  and 
makers,  like  almost  all  other  dealers  in  supplies,  aim 
to  get  nothing  but  first-class  goods;  but  second  and 
third,  and  even  fourth-class  goods,  are  made,  and  you 
get  the  quality  you  pay  for.  In  the  second  place,  belts 
wear  out  quickly  because  they  do  not  get  proper  care. 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Wm.  H.  McBarnes. 
99 


100  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

To  let  a  belt  run  one  moment  after  it  gets  too  slack 
is  bad  practice,  for  it  is  apt  to  slip  and  burn  all  the 
staying  qualities  out  of  it.  Another  good  reason  why 
it  should  not  be  run  slack  is  that  the  engineer  or  belt 
man,  to  save  work,  would  be  tempted  to  put  on  a  dress- 
ing or,  worse  yet,  put  on  resin  to  make  it  pull,  and,  in 
the  language  of  Rex,  "the  man  who  will  put  resin  on 
his  belts  is  either  a  fool  or  a  knave/'  for  it  is  sure  to 
spoil  his  belt  if  continued  for  any  length  of  time. 

In  an  emergency,  as  when  some  unforeseen  substance 
has  found  its  way  to  the  belt,  it  may  be  necessary,  to 
keep  from  shutting  down  between  hours,  to  use  some 
of  the  so-called  dressing.  We  know  from  experience 
that  engineers  will  go  to  almost  any  extreme  to  get  out 
of  a  tight  place  —  circumstances  sometimes  make  it 
necessary  to  keep  a  belt  running  when  it  should  not  — 
but  this  should  not  be  allowed  to  any  extent.  To  allow 
a  belt  to  run  too  tight  is  just  as  bad,  for  it  will  make 
short  life  for  the  belt,  hot  boxes  and  scored  shafting. 
There  is  not  one  in  twenty  who  takes  the  time  or  can 
splice  a  belt  properly;  it  is  generally  done  in  a  hurry, 
any  way  to  make  it  hold  together,  with  the  understand- 
ing that  it  cannot  talk;  but  it  does.  How  often  we  see 
boards  nailed  up  or  rims  tacked  on  to  keep  belts  from 
getting  off  the  pulleys.  All  of  this  is  good  for  the  belt 
dealers. 

This  is  not  all  the  fault  of  the  engineer  or  the  belt 
manufacturer.  Often  belts  are  made  uneven,  and  soon 
get  out  of  shape,  even  with  the  best  of  care.  We  some- 
times find  a  belt  that  ordinarily  runs  easy  on  the  pulleys 
and  does  its  work  with  ease  suddenly  inclined  to  run 


BELTING  — ITS   USE   AND   ABUSE  IQI 

to  either  one  side  or  the  other  of  the  driven  pulley. 
This  is  caused  by  one  of  two  things  —  either  the  belt 
has  been  too  slack,  or  the  load  increased  for  want  of 
lubrication,  or  other  causes.  In  either  case  it  will  run 
off  if  you  insist  on  applying  the  power.  The  remedy 
would  be  to  take  up  the  belt,  thoroughly  oil  the  journals, 
or  take  off  the  extra  load  —  maybe  a  combination  of 
all.  Still  a  little  extra  work  making  the  belt  tighter 
will  enable  it  to  run  well  and  do  the  extra  work  just  as 
long  as  the  extra  tension  can  be  maintained.  Then  it 
may  appear  perplexing  and  run"  to  one  side  of  the  driven 
pulley  when  the  driven  shaft  gets  out  of  line  with  the 
driving  shaft.  In  a  case  of  this  kind  the  belt  does  not 
run  to  what  is  called  the  high  side  of  the  pulley,  but 
to  the  low  side.  Another  peculiar  indication:  If  two 
shafts  are  parallel  and  there  is  a  high  place  on  the 
pulley,  then  a  belt  will  run  to  the  high  place;  but  if 
the  shafts  are  out  of  line,  or,  in  other  words,  are  not 
parallel,  and  the  face  of  the  pulley  straight,  then  the 
belt  will  run  to  the  low  side  or  that  closest  to  the 
driving  shaft.  The  remedy  would  be  to  line  up  your 
shafting. 

The  object  of  this  chapter  is  not  to  say  how  belts 
are  made,  but  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  belt  users 
that  to  get  the  best  results,  belts,  like  all  good  servants, 
must  be  well  cared  for,  and  all  responsibility  should 
rest  with  one  man,  just  as  with  your  engine  or  any 
high-priced  machine. 


XI 


A   COMPARATIVE   TEST   OF    FOUR    BELT 
DRESSINGS1 

DURING  January,  1905,  a  comparative  test  of  the 
working  efficiency  of  four  belt  dressings  and  preserva- 
tives was  made  by  T.  Farmer,  Jr.,  and  the  writer.  The 
test  was  made  on  the  regular  belt-testing  machine  of 
Sibley  College,  Cornell  University,  a  full  description  of 
which  appeared  on  pages  705-707  of  Vol.  12,  Trans. 
A.  S.  M.  E.  This  machine  tests  the  belt  under  actual 
running  conditions,  though  our  belts  were  in  somewhat 
better  than  average  condition.  The  four  belts  were 
new  4-inch  Alexander  No.  I  oak-tanned  single-ply, 
and  were  30  feet  long.  Particular  care  was  taken  to 
keep  them  free  from  oil  and  dirt.  The  belts  were  first 
tested  as  received  from  the  manufacturer,  after  which 
each  belt  was  treated  with  one  of  the  dressings  and 
again  tested. 

The  dressings  were  two  semi-solids,  designated  No.  i 
and  No.  2;  a  bar,  No.  3,  and  neatsfoot  oil,  No.  4. 
As  the  first  three  are  proprietary  articles,  it  was  not 
thought  best  to  give  their  names,  though  any  one 
familiar  with  the  actions  of  belt  dressings  will  readily 
recognize  No.  i  from  its  peculiar  curve.  In  applying 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  William  Evans. 
I O2 


TEST   OF  FOUR  BELT  DRESSINGS 


103 


the  dressings,  we  followed  directions  carefully,  and  in 
the  case  of  Nos.  2  and  3  exceeded  them.  The  belt  was 
given  a  five-hour  run,  during  which  two  or  three  appli- 
cations of  the  dressing  were  given,  and  then  it  was  set 
aside  in  a  warm  place  to  allow  it  to  absorb  the  applied 
dressing.  After  thus  "soaking"  for  at  least  forty-eight 
hours,  the  belt  was  again  run,  this  time  for  three  hours, 
with  one  more  application  of  the  dressing.  As  No.  3 
was  a  bar  of  sticky  dressing,  it  will  readily  be  seen  that 
this  precaution  was  not  really  necessary.  No.  4,  the 
neatsfoot  oil,  was  not  applied  during  the  last  run,  as 
we  were  afraid  of  getting  too  much  oil  in  the  belt.  As 
this  oil  is  so  extensively  used  by  engineers  for  dressing 
belts,  special  care  was  taken  to  get  the  best  possible 
results  with  it. 


I 


Neatsfoot  Oil  Belt 


>.  ' 

3 

|5 

-r 

—  — 

-e- 

is 

r= 

!^ 

=^ 

1< 

,*-- 

^-^ 

^-< 

^ 

— 

.> 

rf 

,> 

^ 

<< 

H3 

V, 

> 

5 

V" 

^ 

-'J 

>• 

if 

^ 

^f 

s 

O    -i 

^ 

/ 

*« 

/ 

/ 

\A 

^ 

/ 

/ 

a 

\ 

0 

* 

XJ 

N) 

4 

Fi 

0 

G 

S: 

fi 

' 

0 

b 

0 

' 

0 

i 

(0 

In  Fig.  82,  the  result  of  the  test  with  the  neatsfoot 
oil  is  shown  graphically.  This  curve  is  platted  to  show 
the  relation  between  initial  tension  per  inch  of  width 
and  horse-power  per  inch  of  width.  One  reason  for  the 
drop  in  horse-power  in  the  treated  belt  is  that  the  slip 


104 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


was  materially  increased;  in  the  lowest  tension  at  which 
any  power  at  all  was  transmitted,  about  15  pounds 
per  inch  of  width,  the  slip  ran  up  as  high  as  25  per  cent. 


Summation  Sheet 


FIG.  83. 

In  Fig.  83,  which  shows  the  comparative  value  of  the 
four  dressings,  the  highest  horse-power  delivered  to  the 
belt  was  taken  as  the  standard.  The  horse-power 
delivered  by  the  belt  was  divided  by  this  standard, 
and  the  result,  expressed  in  percentage,  was  used  as  the 
percentage  of  available  horse-power  transmitted.  This 
comparison  shows  the  great  superiority  of  dressing  No. 
i  at  all  times,  and  especially  at  low  tensions.  In  look- 
ing at  this  chart,  it  is  well  to  remember  that  No.  3  is  a 
sticky  dressing. 

As  the  time  of  the  test  was  so  short,  we  were  unable 
to  determine  the  ultimate  effect  of  the  dressings  on  the 
leather  of  the  belts.  We  could  only  approximate  this 
by  a  chemical  test  and  a  close  examination  of  the  belts 
at  the  end  of  each  test.  The  chemical  analysis  showed 


TEST   OF   FOUR  BELT   DRESSINGS  105 

no  ammonia  or  rosin  in  any  of  the  dressings;  No.  2  had 
a  trace  of  mineral  acid,  and  all  had  oleic  acid  as 
follows:  No.  i,  0.27  per  cent;  No.  2,  29.85  per  cent; 
No.  3,  3.5  per  cent;  No.  4,  0.7  per  cent. 

The  practical  test  showed  no  ill  effects  except  from 
No.  3,  the  sticky  dressing,  which  ripped  and  tore  the 
surface  of  the  belt.  The  high  initial  tensions  caused 
overheating  of  the  journals,  even  though  we  kept  them 
flooded  with  oil.  On  the  low  initial  tensions  there  was 
no  tendency  to  heat,  even  when  the  maximum  horse- 
power was  being  transmitted  by  dressing  No.  i.  In 
the  latter  case  we  oiled  the  bearings  once  in  every  two 
or  three  runs  (a  "run"  comprised  all  the  readings  for 
one  initial  tension),  while  in  the  former  we  oiled  the 
bearings  after  each  reading  and  sometimes  between 
them;  even  then  we  were  afraid  that  the  babbitt  would 
get  hot  enough  to  run.  The  readings  for  each  run 
varied  in  number  from  two  to  a  dozen,  but  only  the 
one  giving  the  maximum  horse-power  was  used  in  draw- 
ing the  curves.  The  belt  speeds  during  the  tests  varied 
between  2000  and  2500  feet  per  minute,  most  of  the 
tests  being  made  at  about  2200  feet  per  minute. 


XII 

BELT   CREEP 

THE  question  of  the  minimum  amount  of  slip  of  a  belt 
in  transmitting  power  from  one  pulley  to  another 
reduces  itself  to  a  qestion  of  creep,  for  it  is  possible  to 
have  belts  large  enough  so  that  with  proper  tensions 
there  will  be  no  regular  slip.  With  a  difference  in  ten- 
sion on  the  two  sides  and  of  elasticity  in  the  belt,  creep, 
however,  is  bound  to  take  place.  What  does  it  amount 
to  and  what  allowance  should  be  made  for  it?  asks 
Prof.  Wm.  W.  Bird  of  the  Worcester  Polytechnic 
Institute  in  his  paper  under  the  above  title. 


FIG.  84, 

In  Fig.  84  let  A  be  the  driver  and  B  the  driven,  Tl 
the  tension  in  the  tight  side  of  the  belt  and  T2  in  the 
slack  side,  the  pulleys  and  belt  running  in  the  direction 
indicated.  One  inch  of  slack  belt  goes  on  to  the 
pulley  B  at  o;  at  or  before  the  point  p  it  feels  the  effect 
of  increased  tension  and  stretches  to  i  +  5  inches. 

1 06 


BELT   CREEP  107 

It  now  travels  from  p  to  m  and  goes  on  to  pulley  A 
while  stretched.  At  or  before  reaching  the  point  n, 
as  the  tension  decreases,  it  contracts  to  one  inch  and 
so  completes  the  cycle. 

With  a  light  load  the  belt  creeps  ahead  of  the  pulley 
B  at  or  near  the  point  p.  If  the  load  is  heavy,  the  creep 
works  towards  the  point  o  and  the  belt  may  slip;  this 
also  takes  place  when  the  belt  tensions  are  too  light 
even  with  small  loads. 

The  point  may  be  easily  appreciated  by  imagining 
the  belt  to  be  of  elastic  rubber.  Professor  Bird  gives 
formulas  for  calculating  the  creep,  and  tests  made  at  the 
Polytechnic  to  determine  the  modulus  of  elasticity. 
He  concludes  that  the  answer  to  his  opening  question 
is  that  for  the  common  leather  belt  running  under  ordi- 
nary conditions  the  creep  should  not  exceed  one  per 
cent.  While  this  is  sometimes  called  legitimate  slip, 
it  is  an  actual  loss  of  power  and  cannot  be  avoided  by 
belt  tighteners  or  patent  pulley  coverings. 

The  smooth  or  finished  side  should  go  next  to  the 
pulley  because  the  actual  area  of  contact  is  greater  than 
when  the  rough  side  is  in  contact;  consequently,  the 
adhesion  due  to  friction  is  greater.  Moreover,  the 
smooth  side  has  less  tensile  strength  than  the  rough  side, 
so  that  any  wear  on  that  side  will  weaken  the  belt  less 
than  wear  on  the  other  side  would. 


XIII 

ROPE    DRIVES1 

THERE  seems  to  be  considerable  difference  in  opinion 
regarding  the  various  ways  of  applying  rope  to  the 
sheaves  in  rope  driving,  viz.,  multiple-  or  separate-rope 
system,  continuous-wrap  or  single-rope  system  with  the 
rope  from  one  of  the  grooves  running  on  a  traveling 
take-up  device,  continuous-wrap  or  single-rope  system 
with  the  take-up  working  directly  on  all  the  wraps. 


FIG.  85. 

The  multiple-  or  separate-rope  system  on  a  horizontal 
drive  where  the  distance  between  centers  is  great 
enough  so  that  the  weight  of  the  rope  will  give  the 
required  tension,  having  the  tight  or  pulling  part  on 
the  lower  side  and  the  sheaves  of  the  same  diameter,  as 
in  Fig.  85,  should  be  very  satisfactory,  as  old  or  worn 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  R.  Hoyt. 
1 08 


ROPE   DRIVES 


109 


ropes  may  be  replaced  by  new  ones  of  larger  diameter, 
or  some  of  the  ropes  may  be  tighter  than  others  and  still 
not  alter  the  efficiency  of  the  drive.  It  will  be  noticed 
in  this  case  that  a  larger  rope  does  not  alter  the  pro- 
portional pitch  diameters  of  the  rope  on  the  driving  and 
driven  sheaves ;  but  if  one  of  the  sheaves  is  larger  than 
the  other,  as  in  Figs.  86  and  87,  and  a  new  or  larger 


FIG.  86. 


FIG.  87. 

rope  is  substituted  for  a  worn  or  smaller  one,  or  if  some 
of  the  ropes  are  a  great  deal  tighter  than  others,  a 
differential  action  will  be  produced  on  the  ropes  owing 
to  the  fact  that  the  larger  or  slack  rope  will  not  go  as 
deeply  into  its  grooves  as  the  smaller  or  tight  one. 


HO  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC- 

Consequently  the  proportionate  pitch  diameter  on  the 
rope  on  the  driver  and  driven  sheave  will  be  changed. 
The  action  will  depend  upon  whether  the  large  or  the 
small  sheave  is  the  driver.  If  the  driver  is  the  larger, 
and  of  course  assuming  that  the  slack  or  large  rope  is 
weaker  than  the  combined  tight  or  smaller  ones,  then 
it  will  have  less  strain  on  the  pulling  side;  but  if  the 
driver  is  smaller,  then  the  new  or  large  rope  will  have 
greater  strain  on  the  pulling  side.  Whether  the  driver 
is  larger  or  smaller,  a  large  or  slack  rope  affects  the 
action  oppositely  to  a  small  or  tight  rope.  Fig.  87 
shows  how  the  action  is  reversed  from  Fig.  86. 

For  clearness  we  will  exaggerate  the  differences  in 
diameter  in  the  sketches  and  figure  the  speeds  that 
the  different  size  ropes  would  produce.  We  will  take 
A  as  normal,  B  i  inch  farther  out  of  the  groove,  pro- 
ducing a  difference  in  diameter  of  2  inches;  C  i  inch 
deeper  in  the  groove,  producing  a  difference  in  diameter 
of  2  inches.  In  Fig.  85  assume  for  the  normal  diameter 
of  driver  and  driven  40  inches,  42  inches  for  B  and 
38  inches  for  C,  with  a  speed  of  200  revolutions  per 
minute  for  the  driver.  Either  A,  B  or  C  will  give 
200  revolutions  per  minute  for  the  driven  sheave, 
omitting  slippage,  of  course.  In  Fig.  86  say  the  normal 
diameter  of  the  driver  for  rope  A  is  60  inches  and  of  the 
driven  30  inches,  a  speed  of  the  driver  of  200  revolutions 
per  minute  will  give  the  driven  sheave  a  speed  of  400 
revolutions  per  minute;  B,  with  the  driver  62  inches 
and  the  driven  sheave  32  inches  diameter,  will  give 
the  latter  a  velocity  of  387!  revolutions  per  minute. 
With  C  the  driver  is  58  inches,  the  driven  28  inches,  and 


ROPE   DRIVES  in 

the  speed  given  the  latter  414!  revolutions  per  minute. 
In  Fig.  87,  the  normal  diameter  of  the  driving  sheave 
being  30  inches  and  the  driven  60  inches,  a  speed  of  the 
driver  of  200  revolutions  per  minute  will  give  a  speed 
of  the  driven  member  of  100  revolutions  per  minute. 
With  B,  if  the  driver  is  32  and  the  driven  62  inches, 
the  driven  sheave  will  have  a  speed  of  io3/T  revolutions 
per  minute;  C,  with  the  driver  28  inches  and  the  driven 
sheave  58  inches,  will  give  the  latter  a  speed  of  96^! 
revolutions  per  minute.  So  it  will  be  readily  seen  what 
effect  a  large  or  a  small  rope  would  have. 

There  are  some  who  claim  that  slack  ropes  will  trans- 
mit more  power  owing  to  more  wrap  on  the  sheaves, 
while  others  claim  that  tight  ropes  are  better.  If  a 
drive  with  all  the  ropes  slack  gave  trouble  by  the  ropes 
slipping,  the  first  remedy  tried  would  be  tightening  the 
ropes.  But  if  the  conditions  were  like  Fig.  87,  it  would 
not  be  particularly  harmful  to  have  some  of  the  ropes 


FIG. 


longer  than  others;  in  fact,  it  might  be  well,  as  the 
longer  ropes  would  not  make  a  complete  circuit  as 
quickly  as  the  shorter  ones;  consequently  the  position 
of  the  splices  would  be  continually  changing.  However, 
it  seems  more  natural  to  have  about  the  same  pull  on 
all  the  ropes,  that  is,  not  have  them  as  shown  in  Fig.  88. 


112  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

In  conclusion  for  the  system,  it  should  be  noted  that 
it  has  no  means  of  tightening  the  ropes  except  by  re- 
splicing;  it  is  not  as  well  adapted  to  various  condi- 
tions as  the  other  forms;  it  is  the  cheapest  form  to 
install  and  in  some  cases  should  give  excellent  satis- 
faction. 

With  the  continuous-wrap  system  having  the  rope 
from  one  of  the  grooves  pass  over  a  traveling  take-up, 
the  latter  has  a  tendency  to  produce  an  unequal  strain 
in  the  rope.  In  taking  up,  or  letting  out,  the  rope  must 
either  slide  around  the  grooves,  or  the  strands  having 
the  greatest  pull  will  wedge  themselves  deeper  into  the 
grooves,  producing  a  smaller  pitch  diameter  than  the 
ones  having  less  pull,  making  a  differential  action  on 
the  ropes.  It  is  therefore  probable  that  it  is  the  differ- 
ential action  that  takes  up  or  lets  out  the  ropes,  the 
take-up  merely  acting  in  a  sense  as  an  automatic 
adjustable  idler.  In  tightening,  when  the  rope  stretches 
or  dries  out,  or  even  in  running  normal,  the  greatest 
pull  will  be  near  the  take-up,  but  if  the  drive  is  exposed 
to  moisture,  and  the  rope  shortens,  it  will  be  farthest 
from  the  take-up,  depending  proportionately  on  the 
number  of  grooves  the  take-up  controls;  so  in  large 
drives  it  is  best  to  have  more  than  one  take-up. 

If  one  should  use  an  unyieldable  substance,  as,  for 
experiment,  a  plain  wire  on  two  drums  wrapped  a 
number  of  times  around  and  also  over  a  take-up,  and 
the  drums  were  moved  together  or  apart,  he  would  find 
that  the  wire  would  have  to  slide  around  the  drum; 
but,  of  course,  with  a  rope  in  a  groove  it  is  different. 
The  rope  will  yield  some.  It  will  also  go  deeper  into 


ROPE   DRIVES  113 

the  groove.  This  system  costs  more  than  the  preceding 
form,  owing  to  extra  expense  for  the  traveling  take-up, 
but  may  be  applied  readily  to  different  conditions  and 
will  be  quite  satisfactory  in  general,  if  properly  de- 
signed and  installed. 

The  continuous-wrap  system  with  a  take-up  or  tight- 
ener acting  directly  on  all  the  wraps  has  practically 
none  of  the  objectionable  features  mentioned  in  the 
other  two  forms,  and  is  quick  in  action,  making  it 
applicable  where  power  is  suddenly  thrown  on  or  off. 
If  the  tightener  is  made  automatic,  it  may  be  controlled 
in  numerous  ways,  as  with  a  weight  or  weight  and  lever 
or  tackle  blocks  and  weight,  etc.  It  also  may  be  fitted 
with  a  cylinder  and  piston,  with  a  valve  to  prevent  too 
quick  action  if  power  is  suddenly  thrown  off  or  on. 
There  is  ordinarily  practically  no  unequal  strain  on  the 
rope.  This  system  may  be  applied  to  different  condi- 
tions as  readily  as  the  preceding  form.  Its  cost  is  more 
than  that  of  either  of  the  others,  as  the  tightener  must 
have  as  many  grooves  as  there  are  wraps.  It  must  also 
have  a  winder  to  return  the  last  wrap  to  the  first  groove, 
and  to  give  its  highest  efficiency  it  must  be  properly 
designed  and  installed. 

In  either  of  the  continuous-wrap  systems,  if  a  portion 
of  larger  rope  is  used,  it  will  produce  a  greater  strain 
directly  behind  the  large  rope,  owing  to  its  traveling 
around  the  sheave  quicker.  In  angle  work  there  is  al- 
ways extra  wear  on  the  rope  in  the  side  of  the  groove, 
as  only  the  center  or  one  rope  may  be  accurately  lined ; 
so  it  is  not  advisable  to  crowd  the  centers  in  angular 
drives,  as  the  shorter  the  centers  and  wider  the  sheaves 


II4  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

the  greater  the  wearing  angle.  It  must  be  remem- 
bered that  the  foregoing  applies  to  ordinary  simple 
drives  as  shown  in  the  sketches;  where  the  drive  is 
complicated,  it  may  be  necessary  to  make  other  al- 
lowances. 


XIV 

A   NEW   SCHEME    IN    ROPE   TRANS- 
MISSION1 

THE  use  of  manila  rope  for  transmitting  power  is 
becoming  so  common  as  to  attract  no  comment,  and  it 
possesses  so  many  advantages  in  its  own  field  over  any 
other  method  of  conveying  power  that  some  objections 
really  existing  are  overlooked.  When  a  rope  drive  is 
installed  according  to  modern  practice,  it  is  generally  so 
successful  and  furnishes  such  an  agreeable  and  smooth 
running  drive  that  any  possible  objection  is  silenced  by 
the  many  good  qualities  it  evidently  has.  But,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  American  continuous  method  of 
installing  a  rope  drive  has  a  few  serious  drawbacks. 

Were  it  possible  to  install  a  drive  of  say  thirty  ropes 
in  such  a  manner  that  each  one  of  the  ropes  had  exactly 
the  same  strain  on  it  that  each  other  rope  had,  and  this 
under  varying  conditions  of  speed  and  load,  it  is  evident 
that  the  thirty  ropes  would  work  exactly  as  a  belt  of 
proper  width  to  carry  the  load  would,  that  the  ropes 
would  be  running  with  exactly  the  same  tension  clear 
across  the  width  of  the  drive,  like  the  belt.  But  accord- 
ing to  the  best  authorities  on  rope  transmission,  this 
ideal  condition  is  impossible  to  obtain. 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  Geo.  F.  Willis. 
US 


n6  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

It  is  given  as  desirable,  by  writers  on  rope  trans- 
mission problems,  to  use  a  take-up  sheave  for  every 
twelve  ropes,  while  ten  is  considered  even  better. 
The  best  results  have  been  secured  by  using  a  take-up 
sheave  for  not  more  than  eight  ropes.  But  in  any  case 
the  evil  of  differential  driving  still  exists. 

In  truth,  the  only  drive  in  which  perfect  conditions 
can  exist,  according  to  present  practice,  is  one  using 
but  a  single  rope. 

It  is  evident  that  when  the  load  comes  on  the  ropes, 
the  entire  number  of  ropes  in  use  are  only  able  to 
ultimately  reach  the  same  tension  from  the  elasticity 
of  the  ropes  themselves,  as  slipping  in  the  grooves  rarely 
occurs.  But  there  is  a  continued  and  uneven  strain 
on  the  ropes  until  the  load  becomes  divided  between 
them,  and  where  ropes  are  used  to  drive  a  varying  load, 
this  strain  must  and  does  reduce  the  life  of  the  ropes 
materially. 

Many  rope  transmissions  have  been  unsatisfactory 
because  of  this,  and  when  these  drives  have  been  so 
badly  designed  as  to  use  one  take-up  sheave  for  more 
than  ten  ropes,  they  are  apt  to  be  more  expensive  and 
troublesome  than  could  have  been  anticipated. 

One  rope  drive  is  known  where  thirty  ropes  are  used, 
with  only  one  take-up  sheave.  It  has  been  a  source  of 
continual  trouble  and  expense,  and  has  been  replaced 
by  the  English  system  of  multiple  ropes.  The  inherent 
troubles  of  this  system  have  made  the  changed  drive 
even  worse  than  the  original.  It  will  now  be  replaced 
by  the  system  here  illustrated. 

In  Fig.  89  is  shown  a  plan  view  of  the  tighteners  for 


A  NEW   SCHEME   IN   ROPE  TRANSMISSION 


117 


a  thirty-one  rope  drive.  As  the  ropes  shown  are  ij 
inches  in  diameter  the  main  tightener  sheave  is  shown 
60  inches  in  diameter  or  forty  times  the  diameter 
of  the  rope  used.  Mounted  above  the  thirty-two  groove 
sheave,  and  in  the  same  frame,  is  a  single  groove  sheave 


FIG.  89. 

of  the  right  diameter  to  reach  the  two  outside  ropes 
as  shown,  in  this  case  86  inches  in  diameter.  Further 
details  are  shown  in  the  end  elevation,  Fig.  90,  and  in 
the  side  elevation,  Fig.  91.  Allowing  a  working  strain 
of  say  250  pounds  to  each  strand  of  the  thirty-one 
ropes,  we  have  a  total  weight  of  15,500  pounds  which 


n8 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


these  two  idler  sheaves  should  weigh,  including  the 
frame  holding  them. 

These  sheaves  and  the  frame  are  mounted  directly 
upon  the  ropes,  on  the  slack  side  of  course,  and  just 
as  a  tightener  is  mounted  on  a  belt.  The  first  rope 
passes  around  the  thirty-two-groove  sheave,  on  up 
over  the  single-groove  sheave,  and  back  under  the 
multiple-groove  sheave  again,  and  is  thus  crossed  over. 


FIG.  90. 

It  is  evident  that  a  rope  threaded  on  this  drive 
would,  by  the  time  it  had  run  ten  minutes  or  so,  have 
every  strand  in  exactly  the  same  tension  every  other 
strand  was  in,  and  that  the  ropes  would  remain  in  this 
condition  in  spite  of  variation  of  load  and  speed,  as 
long  as  they  lasted. 

The  initial  expense,  including  the  erection,  would 
probably  be  no  more  than  that  for  the  necessary  six 


A   NEW   SCHEME   IN   ROPE   TRANSMISSION       119 

or  eight   single-groove   idlers,   with   their  shafts   and 
boxes,  tracks,  etc.,  which  would  be  necessary  according 


FIG.  91. 

to  established  practice.     The  room  taken  up  would 
evidently  be  much  less. 

In  Fig.  92  an  assembled  drive  of  this  character  is 


120 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


shown.  In  Fig.  93  is  shown  a  reverse  drive,  common  in 
sawmill  practice,  where  the  two  sheaves  described 
would  preferably  be  mounted  on  a  car,  with  the  proper 
weight  to  give  the  desired  tension. 


1  Groove  Idler 


FIG.  92. 

In  a  recent  design  is  shown  a  cylinder  with  about 
6  feet  of  piston  travel,  provided  with  a  reducing  valve, 
so  that  the  steam  pressure  would  remain  constant  at 
about  40  pounds.  The  cylinder  is  bolted  to  the  mill 


FIG.  93. 

frame,  while  the  piston  rod  is  connected  to  the  car 
carrying  the  tightener  sheaves.  The  cylinder  is  of  the 
proper  area,  when  furnished  with  steam  at  40  pounds 


A  NEW  SCHEME  IN   ROPE  TRANSMISSION      121 

pressure,  to  put  the  correct  strain  on  the  ropes.  A 
small  steam  trap  is  part  of  the  equipment.  This  should 
give  a  very  elastic  tension,  and  so  long  as  steam 
pressure  was  at  40  pounds  or  over,  the  tension  would 
remain  constant.  With  6  feet  piston  travel,  it  is  evident 
that  372  feet  of  stretch  could  be  taken  out  of  the 
rope,  an  amount  entirely  out  of  the  question.  A  dog, 
or  buffer,  can  be  so  located  as  to  prevent  excessive 
back  travel  of  the  piston  and  car  when  steam  pressure 
is  taken  off. 

It  is  evident  that  this  method  can  be  applied  to  a 
drive  using  any  number  of  ropes. 


XV 

HOW  TO   ORDER   TRANSMISSION    ROPE1 

IT  is  probable  that  more  different  and  erroneous 
terms  are  used  by  purchasing  agents  and  engineers 
when  writing  orders  for  transmission  rope  than  are  used 
to  describe  any  other  article  needed  about  a  mill. 
A  knowledge  of  how  to  order  clearly  just  the  kind 
of  rope  wanted  would  prevent  delays  and  expense  to 
many  plants.  Manufacturers  of  transmission  rope 
constantly  receive  orders  so  peculiar  in  their  wording 
that  they  dare  not  venture  an  immediate  shipment, 
but  must  first  resort  to  the  mails,  telegraph  or  telephone 
to  find  out  what  is  really  desired,  and,  of  course,  these 
mistakes,  following  the  law  of  "the  general  cussedness 
of  things,"  usually  occur  after  a  breakdown  at  the 
very  time  when  every  minute's  delay  means  a  consider- 
able sum  of  money  lost. 

There  are  in  this  country  two  manufacturers  of 
cordage  who  make  a  specialty  of  transmission  rope, 
and  the  names  under  which  their  rope  is  sold  are  fairly 
well  known  to  all  users  of  rope  drives.  In  addition  to 
these  two  concerns,  there  are,  perhaps,  three  or  four 
other  cordage  mills  which  make  this  grade  of  rope  to 
some  extent.  From  this  comparatively  small  source 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  F.  S.  Greene. 
122 


HOW  TO   ORDER  TRANSMISSION   ROPE         123 

many  different  brands  have  sprung  which,  rechristened, 
find  their  way  to  the  market  under  a  variety  of  names, 
both  poetic  and  classic.  These  many  names  lead  to 
frequent  delays  in  ordering.  The  man  who  does  the 
splicing  at  the  mill  has,  at  one  time  or  another,  heard 
of  a  rope  glorying  in  the  possession  of  some  fancy  title. 
It  is  more  than  probable  that  some  salesman  has  told 
him  most  wonderful  stories  of  what  this  particular  rope 
can  do;  consequently  when  the  time  comes  for  a  new 
rope,  the  splicer  goes  to  the  office  and  asks  that  so 
many  feet  of  such  and  such  a  rope  be  ordered.  The 
purchasing  agent  makes  out  the  order,  using  this  name, 
and  sends  it  to  the  manufacturer,  who  in  all  proba- 
bility has  never  heard  of  the  rope  and  knows  for  a  fact 
that  it  is  not  the  brand  under  which  any  of  his  fellow 
manufacturers  are  selling  rope.  Before  the  order  can 
be  filled,  two  or  more  letters  or  telegrams  must  be 
sent  and  received. 

It  frequently  occurs  that  manufacturers  receive 
orders  specifying  brands  which  never  had  existence 
at  all,  so  far  as  their  knowledge  goes.  One  firm  recently 
found  in  the  same  mail  requests  for  "Fern,"  "Juno," 
and  "Elephant"  transmission  rope,  though  no  such 
brands  have  ever  been  on  the  market. 

Another  familiar  mistake  is  the  ordering  of  a  certain 
color  yarn  in  the  rope,  as  if  this  decoration  possessed 
some  peculiar  virtue.  These  colored  yarns  are  simply 
a  question  of  dye,  and  the  rope  in  all  probability  would 
be  better  and  stronger  were  they  left  out. 

Then  again,  we  find  peculiar  wording  as  to  the 
lubrication  of  a  rope.  Some  people  insist  that  the  rope 


124  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

shall  be  "tallow  inlaid";  others  call  for  an  "absolutely 
dry"  rope  or  for  a  "water-laid"  rope.  All  transmission 
rope,  to  be  of  any  service  whatsoever,  must  be  lubricated 
and  such  a  thing  as  a  "dry"  transmission  rope  or  a 
"water-laid"  one,  whatever  that  term  might  mean, 
would  be  of  but  small  service  to  the  user.  Each  manu- 
facturer has  his  own  method  or  formula  for  lubricating, 
and  if  this  be  a  plumbago  or  graphite-laid  rope,  and  he 
is  asked  for  an  old-fashioned  tallow-laid  rope,  he  cannot 
fill  orders  directly  from  stock. 

It  is  unnecessary  to  name  the  number  of  strands, 
unless  you  wish  a  three-  or  six-strand  rope,  for  a  four- 
strand  transmission  rope  is  always  sent,  unless  other- 
wise specified.  It  is  also  unnecessary  to  say  anything 
about  the  core,  as  the  rope  is  always  supplied  with  one, 
and  generally  it  is  lubricated.  Frequently  five-strand 
rope  is  ordered.  This  is  very  confusing,  as  there  is 
such  a  thing  as  a  five-strand  rope,  but  it  is  very  rarely 
made.  Ordering  a  five-strand  rope  is  usually  brought 
about  through  the  error  of  considering  the  core  as  a 
fifth  strand. 

It  is  better,  though  not  necessary,  to  order  by  the 
diameter  instead  of  the  circumference,  as  transmission 
rope  is  made  and  usually  sold  upon  diameter  specifi- 
cation. 

By  far  the  most  frequent  specifications  received  call 
for  "long-fiber,  four-strand  rope  with  core,"  and  having 
done  this,  the  purchaser  considers  he  has  named  all 
necessary  requirements.  At  the  present  price  of  manila 
hemp,  which  varies  from  7  cents  per  pound  for  the 
poorer  grades  to  12^  cents  per  pound  for  the  best,  he 


UNIVERSITY 


TRANSMISSION  ROPE         125 


may  be  quoted  for  such  a  rope,  with  entire  honesty, 
anywhere  from  1  1  to  17  cents  per  pound.  To  procure 
long-fiber  manila  hemp,  and  twist  it  into  four  strands 
about  a  core,  does  not  make  a  proper  transmission  rope. 
As  the  rope  will  probably  be  required  to  run  at  a  speed 
of  from  3000  to  5000  feet  per  minute  and  be  subjected 
to  rapid  and  constant  bending  throughout  its  entire 
length,  the  fiber  should  not  only  be  long,  but  the  rope 
should  be  soft  and  pliable.  Further  than  this,  as  the 
fiber,  yarns  and  strands  must  slip  one  upon  another 
during  the  bending,  the  rope  should  be  so  lubricated  as 
to  reduce  to  a  minimum  the  frictional  wear  from  such 
slipping  and  rubbing,  which  is  a  much  larger  factor 
than  is  generally  supposed.  Again,  the  unusual 
strength  of  manila  fiber  is  shown  only  when  subjected 
to  a  longitudinal  strain.  Transversely,  owing  to  the 
cellular  formation,  the  fiber  is  relatively  weak;  there- 
fore, in  manufacturing  transmission  rope,  the  greatest 
care  is  necessary  to  secure  such  proportion  of  twist  in 
both  yarns  and  strand  as  to  render  the  rope  least 
vulnerable  to  crosswise  strain.  Nor  will  the  term 
"long  fiber"  insure  the  purchaser  obtaining  the  proper 
material  in  his  rope,  for  the  longest  manila  fiber,  con- 
trary to  general  belief,  is  not  always  the  best  from 
which  to  make  a  transmission  rope.  Some  of  the  ex- 
tremely long  variety  is  coarse  and  brittle.  The  best 
fiber  for  transmission  rope  is  a  particular  grade  of  manila 
hemp  known  as  Zebu,  Fig.  94,  which  is  light  in  color, 
silky  to  the  touch  and  exceedingly  strong  and  flexible. 
The  accompanying  illustratio'n,  Fig.  95,  shows  a  close 
view  of  two  grades  of  hemp,  that  on  the  left  being 


126  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


FIG.  94. 


FIG.  95. 


HOW  TO   ORDER   TRANSMISSION   ROPE 


127 


known  in  the  trade  as  ''Superior  2ds,"  while  the  fiber 
to  the  right  of  the  cut   is   ''Zebu/'     Fig.  96  shows 


FIG.  96. 

a  more  distant  view  of  the  same  two  "heads"  of  hemp, 
and  the  reader  will  see  that  in  both  the  fiber  is  exceed- 


128  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

ing  long,  and  if  anything,  that  of  the  Superior  2<ds 
is  longer  than  in  the  Zebu.  A  transmission  rope  made 
from  the  latter,  however,  will  cost  the  manufacturer 
from  3i  to  4  cents  more  per  pound  than  if  he  had  used 
Superior  2ds,  and  will  outlast  two  ropes  made  from 
the  longer  though  coarser  fiber. 

The  reader,  if  he  has  perused  this  chapter  to  the  pres- 
ent point,  is  doubtless  now  asking  himself:  "How  shall 
I  word  my  order  when  I  want  a  first-class  driving 
rope?"  The  safest  road  to  follow  is  to  write  to  some 
manufacturer  or  firm  whom  you  know  to  be  reliable, 
and  ask  for  so  many  feet  of  their  transmission  rope, 
giving  the  name,  if  you  are  certain  on  that  point,  and, 
of  course,  being  sure  to  mention  the  diameter.  In 
case  you  do  not  know  the  name  of  his  rope,  word  your 
order  as  simply  and  briefly  as  possible;  for  example: 
"One  thousand  feet  ij  inches  diameter  first  quality 
manila  transmission  rope,"  and  if  the  concern  to  which 
you  write  is  a  reputable  one,  you  will  receive  a  four- 
strand  rope,  made  from  Zebu  manila  hemp,  put  to- 
gether with  proper  twist  and  lay  for  the  service 
required. 


XVI 

A    BELTING   AND    PULLEY   CHART1 

RULE  i .  Pulley  Speed.  —  When  the  diameter  of 
both  pulleys  and  the  speed  of  one  is  given,  to  find  the 
speed  of  the  other:  Place  the  points  of  spacing  dividers 
upon  the  two  given  diameters  in  inches  upon  the  scale 
(Fig.  97);  then  raise  the  dividers,  keeping  the  space 
obtained,  and  place  one  point  on  the  given  speed  and 
the  other  above  it  for  speed  of  S,  or  below  it  for  speed 
of  L  (S  and  L  meaning  smaller  and  larger  pulley,  re- 
spectively). This  point  will  fall  upon  the  required 
speed. 

Example:  If  the  two  pulley  diameters  are  10  and 
25  inches  and  speed  of  larger  pulley  is  120  revolutions 
per  minute,  what  is  speed  of  small  pulley? 

Place  the  points  of  dividers  on  10  and  25  on  scale  A, 
then  lift  the  dividers  and  place  one  point  on  120  and 
the  other  above  it  upon  the  scale ;  the  other  point  now 
rests  on  300  as  the  speed  of  S.  If  the  speed  of  S  had 
been  given,  one  point  would  have  been  placed  at  300 
and  the  other  below  it,  falling  upon  120,  the  required 
speed  of  L. 

Note.  —  In  applying  this  rule,  if  the  speed  comes 
beyond  the  range  of  scale  A,  the  result  may  be  read 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  A.  G.  Holman,  M.  E. 
129 


130  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


FIG.  97. 


A  BELTING  AND  PULLEY  CHART      131 

by  carrying  the  space  to  the  revolution  scale  on  scale 
B,  and  proceeding  in  the  same  way. 

Example:  Diameter  of  pulleys  12  and  36  inches 
and  speed  of  L  500,  what  is  speed  of  S?  Place  points 
of  dividers  on  12  and  36.  Now,  if  dividers  are  raised 
and  one  point  placed  on  500  and  the  other  above  it 
on  scale  A,  it  will  come  beyond  the  top  of  the  scale. 
Hence  go  to  scale  B,  placing  lower  point  on  revolution 
scale  at  500  and  the  other  point  above,  which  will  fall 
upon  1500,  the  answer. 

RULE  2.  Pulley  Diameters.  —  When  the  speed  of 
both  pulleys  and  the  diameter  of  one  is  given,  to  find 
diameter  of  the  other:  Place  points  of  dividers  on  the 
two  speeds  on  scale  A  or  revolution  scale  B.  Then 
place  one  point  of  dividers  on  given  diameter  and  the 
other  above  it  to  find  diameter  of  L,  or  below  it  for 
diameter  of  S.  The  figure  thus  indicated  is  the  re- 
quired diameter. 

Example:  Speeds  180  and  450  and  diameter  of 
smaller  pulley  20.  What  must  be  diameter  of  L? 

Place  points  of  dividers  on  180  and  450  on  scale  A. 
Then  place  one  point  on  20  (the  given  diameter).  The 
other  point  falls  at  50,  the  required  diameter  of  L. 

If  the  point  falls  between  two  graduations  in  any 
problem,  the  result  can  be  closely  judged  by  the  rela- 
tive position. 

The  other  and  more  labor-saving  use  for  this  chart 
is  its  application  to  belting  problems.  It  is  generally 
conceded  that  there  is  no  subject  of  more  general  inter- 
est in  practical  mechanics  and  none  on  which  there  is  a 
greater  difference  of  opinion  than  the  proper  allowance 


132  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

to  be  made  in  the  selection  of  belt  sizes  for  given  re- 
quirements. The  general  formula  for  the  horse-power 
transmitted  by  belting  is 

WS 
HP  =  —^-  in  which  HP  =  horse-power, 

W  =  width  of  belt  in  inches,  5  =  speed  of  belt  in 
feet  per  minute,  and  C  =  constant. 

The  proper  values  of  this  constant,  or  the  feet  per 
minute  that  each  inch  of  width  must  run  to  transmit 
a  horse-power,  under  certain  conditions,  is  the  point 
in  question. 

On  the  right-hand  side  of  line  A  on  the  chart  is  a 
series  of  lines  representing  different  values  for  this 
constant.  The  lower  one,  marked  4,  represents  400 
feet  belt  speed  per  minute,  the  next  above  is  for  500, 
and  so  on.  Against  some  of  these  values  are  sugges- 
tions as  to  belts  often  recommended  in  connection  with 
these  constants.  For  instance,  2  to  6  5  suggests  the 
constant  1 100  to  be  used  for  2-  to  6-inch  single  leather 
belt,  1000  for  6^-  to  lo-inch  single,  600  for  2-  to  6-inch 
double,  etc. 

These  suggestions  practically  agree  with  the  advice 
of  the  Geo.  V.  Cresson  Company's  catalog  and  the 
deductions  of  Kent's  Handbook. 

More  power  may  be  transmitted  than  these  sugges- 
tions will  allow,  by  increasing  the  tension,  but  this  is 
accompanied  by  the  disadvantage  of  requiring  extra 
attention  and  undue  pressure  upon  bearings. 

The  use  of  the  chart  for  horse-power  and  width  of 
belting  is  explained  by  the  following  rules: 


A   BELTING   AND   PULLEY   CHART  133 

RULE  3.  Horse-power  of  Belting. — To  find  the 
horse-power  that  can  be  transmitted  when  diameter 
and  speed  of  pulley  and  width  of  belt  are  given :  Place 
one  point  of  dividers  on  scale  A  at  the  width  of  belt 
in  inches  and  the  other  point  at  the  bottom  of  the 
line  (at  i).  Next  add  this  space  to  the  hight  repre- 
senting diameter  of  pulley  by  placing  lower  point  of 
dividers  upon  the  given  diameter  and  allowing  the  other 
point  to  rest  upon  the  scale  above.  Then  holding  the 
upper  point  stationary,  open  or  close  dividers  until  the 
other  point  falls  upon  the  proper  constant  on  the  scale 
at  right-hand  side  of  line  A.  Now  transfer  this  space 
last  obtained  to  the  scale  B  by  raising  the  dividers, 
carrying  them  square  across  to  B  and  placing  the  point 
that  was  on  the  constant  upon  the  given  speed  on  the 
revolution  scale.  Note  the  location  of  the  other  point 
of  dividers  upon  the  horse-power  scale,  which  indicates 
the  horse-power  that  can  be  transmitted  under  the 
given  conditions. 

Example:  What  horse-power  can  be  transmitted 
by  an  8-inch  double  belt  running  on  a  4O-inch  pulley 
at  500  feet  per  minute?  Place  one  point  of  dividers 
on  line  A  at  8  (width  of  belt)  and  the  other  point  at 
bottom  of  line.  Next  raise  dividers  and  place  lower 
point  on  40  (diameter  of  pulley)  and  let  the  other  point 
fall  above  upon  the  scale.  Then  close  dividers  until 
lower  point  comes  to  the  constant  for  6j  to  10  double. 
Carry  this  space  to  scale  B  with  lower  point  on  500  on 
revolution  scale.  Under  point  now  falls  upon  84  on 
horse-power  scale,  which  is  the  required  horse-power. 

RULE  4.   Width  of  Belting.  —  To  find  the  necessary 


134  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

width  of  belting  when  size  and  speed  of  pulley  and  the 
horse-power  are  given:  Place  one  point  of  dividers 
on  scale  B  upon  the  horse-power  and  the  other  point 
upon  the  revolutions.  Next  transfer  this  space  to  scale 
A  by  raising  the  dividers,  carrying  them  square  across 
and  placing  the  point  that  was  on  revolutions  upon  the 
constant.  Then  holding  the  other  point  stationary, 
raise  the  point  that  was  on  the  constant  and  open 
dividers  until  this  point  falls  upon  the  given  diameter. 
Now  lift  the  dividers  and  carry  the  lower  point  down 
to  bottom  of  line  (the  point  i).  The  upper  point  will 
now  indicate  the  required  width  of  belt. 

Note.  —  If,  in  finding  width  of  belt,  there  is  doubt 
about  the  proper  constant  to  take,  a  medium  value, 
say  6,  may  be  assumed  and  a  hasty  "cut  and  try" 
will  show  in  what  classification  the  required  belt  will 
come. 

Example:  What  width  of  belt  for  100  horse-power 
with  4O-inch  pulley  at  500  revolutions? 

Place  point  of  dividers  on  scale  B  upon  100  on  horse- 
power scale  and  the  other  upon  500  on  the  revolution 
scale.  Then  carry  the  space  to  scale  A  with  lower 
point  on  constant  5.  Then  resting  dividers  upon 
upper  point  open  them  until  lower  point  is  at  40  (di- 
ameter). Finally,  raise  dividers  and  place  lower  point 
at  bottom  of  line.  Upper  point  is  now  at  94,  indicating 
the  nearest  even  width  10  as  the  answer. 

A  little  practice  will  make  one  familiar  with  these 
rules,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  in  the  belting  rules  the 
four  motions  perform  two  multiplications  and  a  division. 


XVII 


SPLICING  ROPE 

THE  splicing  of  a  transmission  rope  is  an  important 
matter;  the  points  on  which  the  success  of  the  splice, 
and  incidentally  the  drive,  depend  being  the  length 
of  the  splice,  which  in  turn  depends  upon  the  diameter 
of  the  rope  and  which  is  given  in  the  table  (Fig.  973); 
DATA  RELATIVE  TO  MANILA  TRANSMISSION  ROPE  AND  SHEAVES 


1 

1 

i. 

ll 

1 

11 

LENGTH  OF  SPLICE 
IN  FEET 

°s 

n 
ji 

^ 

s 

*  0 

j 

O  ~ 

c  *5 

•g 

5 
•g 

1- 

I§ 

»4 

fig 

S'i 

3 

ll 

Jl 

ll 

|| 

"S 

1 

1 

^1 

ill 

Is 

1 

aS, 

Jl 

1 

1 

=  a 
I" 

l-sli 

3 

* 

< 

05 

^ 

** 

•* 

0 

* 

^ 

i 

•25 

.12 

1750 

5° 

6 

20 

1060 

1 

.2906 

.16 

2730 

80 

6 

24 

970 

f 

•5625 

.20 

3950 

112 

6 

8 

27 

760 

| 

.7656 

.26 

5400 

153 

6 

8 

32 

650 

i 

i. 

•34 

7OOO 

2OO 

7 

10 

14 

36 

570 

i| 

1.2656 

•43 

8900 

253 

7 

10 

16 

40 

510 

if 

1.5625 

•63 

IO,9OO 

312 

7 

10 

16 

45 

460 

i| 

2.25 

•77 

15,700 

45° 

8 

12 

18 

54 

380 

if 

3.0625 

1.04 

2I,40O 

612 

8 

12 

18 

63 

330 

2 

4- 

1.36 

28,000 

800 

9 

14 

20 

72 

290 

2? 

5-°625 

i-73 

35»4QO 

IOI2 

9 

14 

2O 

81 

255 

2| 

6.25 

2.13 

43.700 

1250 

10 

16 

22 

90 

230 

FIG.  97  a.  . 

135 


136  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

the  diameter  of  the  splice,  which  should  be  the  same 
as  the  diameter  of  the  rope;  the  securing  of  the  ends 
of  the  strands  of  the  splice,  which  must  be  so  fastened 
that  they  will  not  wear  or  whip  out  or  cause  the  over- 
lying strands  to  wear  unduly;  and  the  workmanship 
of  the  splice,  which  should  be  the  best  it  is  possible  to 
secure.  When  splicing  an  old  and  a  new  piece  of 
rope,  the  new  piece  should  be  thoroughly  stretched, 
for,  at  best,  it  is  an  exceedingly  difficult  task  on 
account  of  the  stretch  and  difference  in  diameter  of 
the  rope. 

The  illustrations  and  instructions  for  making  stand- 
ard rope  splices  are  taken,  by  the  courtesy  of  the 
American  Manufacturing  Company,  from  their  ''Blue 
Book  of  Rope  Transmission/' 

There  are  many  different  splices  now  in  use,  but  the 
one  that  experience  has  proved  best  is  what  is  known 
as  the  English  transmission  splice.  In  describing  this 
we  take  for  our  example  a  four-strand  rope,  if  inches 
in  diameter,  as  spliced  on  sheaves  in  the  multiple 
system.  The  rope  is  first  placed  around  sheaves,  and, 
with  a  tackle,  stretched  and  hauled  taut;  the  ends 
should  pass  each  other  from  six  to  seven  feet,  the  pass- 
ing point  being  marked  with  twine  on  each  rope. 
The  rope  is  then  slipped  from  the  sheaves  and  allowed 
to  rest  on  shafts,  to  give  sufficient  slack  for  making 
the  splice.  , 

Unlay  the  strands  in  pairs  as  far  back  as  the  twines 
M,  M' ',  crotch  the  four  pairs  of  strands  thus  opened 
(Fig.  98),  cores  having  been  drawn  out  together  on 
the  upper  side.  Then,  having  removed  marking 


SPLICING   ROPE 


twine  M,  unlay  the  two  strands  6  and  8,  still  in  pairs, 
back  a  distance  of  two  feet,  to  A',  the  strands  i  and  3, 


also  in  pairs,  being  carefully  laid  in  their  place.  Next 
unlay  the  strands  5  and  7  in  pairs,  to  Af ,  replacing 
them  as  before  with  2  and  4.  The  rope  is  now  as 


138 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


shown  in  Fig.  99.  The  pair  of  strands  6  and  8  are 
now  separated,  and  8  unlaid  four  feet  back  to  B,  a 
distance  of  six  feet  from  center,  strand  6  being  left  at 


A.  The  pair  of  strands  i  and  3  having  been  separated, 
3  is  left  at  A,  as  companion  for  6,  strand  i  being  care- 
fully laid  in  place  of  strand  8  until  they  meet  at  point 


SPLICING    ROPE  139 

B.  The  two  pairs  of  strands  2-4  and  5-7  are  now 
separated  and  laid  in  the  same  manner,  every  care 
being  taken,  while  thus  putting  the  rope  together, 
that  original  twist  and  lay  of  strand  is  maintained. 
The  protruding  cores  are  now  cut  off  so  that  the  ends, 
when  pushed  back  in  rope,  butt  together. 

The  rope  now  appears  as  shown  in  Fig.  100,  and 
after  the  eight  strands  have  been  cut  to  convenient 
working  lengths  (about  two  feet),  the  companion 
strands  are  ready  to  be  fastened  together  and 
"tucked";  this  operation  is  described  for  strands  2 
and  7,  the  method  being  identical  for  the  other  three 
pairs.  Unlay  2  and  7  for  about  twelve  to  fourteen 
inches,  divide  each  strand  in  half  by  removing  its 
cover  yarns  (see  Fig.  101),  whip  with  twine  the  ends 
of  interior  yarns  2'  and  7';  then,  leaving  cover  2,  relay 
2'  until  near  7  and  7',  here  join  with  simple  knot  2' 
and  7',  Fig.  102.  Divide  cover  yarns  7,  and  pass  2' 
through  them,  continuing  on  through  the  rope  under 
the  two  adjacent  strands,  avoiding  the  core,  thus 
locking  2',  Fig.  103.  In  no  event  pass  2'  over  these  or 
any  other  strands.  Half-strand  7'  must  now  be  taken 
care  of;  at  the  right  of  the  knot  made  with  2'  and  7', 
2'  is  slightly  raised  with  a  marlin  spike,  and  7'  passed 
or  tucked  around  it  two  or  three  times,  these  two 
half-strands  forming  in  this  way  a  whole  strand. 
Half-strand  7'  is  tucked  until  cover  2  is  reached, 
whose  yarns  are  divided  and  7'  passed  through  them 
and  drawn  under  the  two  adjacent  strands,  forming 
again  the  lock.  The  strand  ends  at  both  locks  are 
now  cut  off,  leaving  about  two  inches,  so  that  the 


140  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


"3C- 


« 

•\tt 


SPLICING   ROPE 


141 


FIG.  102. 


FIG.  103. 


142 


SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 


yarns  may  draw  slightly  without  unlocking.  This 
completes  the  joining  of  one  pair  of  strands,  Fig.  104. 
The  three  remaining  pairs  of  strands  are  joined  in  the 
same  manner. 


FIG.  104. 

After  the  rope  has  been  in  service  a  few  days,  the 
projecting  ends  at  locks  wear  away,  and  if  tucks  have 
been  carefully  made,  and  the  original  twist  of  yarns 
preserved,  the  diameter  of  the  rope  will  not  be  in- 
creased, nor  can  the  splice  be  located  when  the  rope 
is  in  motion. 


XVIII 

WIRE    ROPE   TRANSMISSION1 

WIRE  ropes  are  extensively  and  successfully  used 
in  the  horizontal  and  inclined  transmission  of  great 
power  of  unlimited  amount,  the  advantages  over  hemp 
rope  belting  being:  driving  at  very  long  distances, 
comparatively  small  loss  through  slipping  and  the 
possibility  of  driving  in  the  open  air. 

Vertical  transmission  of  power,  on  account  of  the 
weight  of  the  rope,  is  excluded. 

Formerly  the  material  used  in  the  manufacture 
of  the  wires  was  best  charcoal  iron,  but  now  almost 
exclusively  tough  crucible-steel  wires  are  used,  as  steel 
wire  ropes  are  stronger,  do  not  stretch  as  much,  and  last 
longer  than  iron  ropes. 

The  wire  ropes  consist  of  six  strands  of  from  six  to 
twenty  wires  each,  and  the  strands  to  form  the  rope 
are  woven  in  the  opposite  direction  to  the  wires  in  the 
strand.  In  the  center  of  each  strand  and  in  the  center 
of  the  rope  a  cotton  core  is  placed.  These  cores  are  of 
the  greatest  importance,  for  by  reducing  the  friction 
of  the  wires  against  each  other,  they  serve  to  increase 
the  lifetime  of  the  rope,  which,  according  to  the  strain 

1  Contributed  to  Power  by  C.  Boysen,  M..  E, 

14.3 


144  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

on  the  rope  and  the  size  of  the  smallest  pulley,  is  from 
one  to  three  years. 

To  prevent  rusting,  the  wire  ropes  receive  a  coat 
of  boiled  linseed  oil,  or  a  hot  mixture  consisting  of 
three  parts  of  drip  oil  and  one  part  of  resin  is  applied. 
This  latter  mixture  at  the  same  time  improves  the  ad- 
hesion between  the  rope  and  the  lining  placed  in  the 
bottom  of  the  pulleys,  thus  reducing  the  loss  caused  by 
slipping  of  the  rope.  Wire  ropes  used  for  the  trans- 
mission of  power  should  never  be  galvanized. 

The  ends  of  the  rope  are  spliced  together,  from  10 
to  20  feet  being  necessary  for  a  good  splice;  great  care 
should  be  taken  that  the  splice  is  made  by  experienced 
men,  and  that  the  rope  is  made  long  enough.  A  rope 
stretches  constantly  from  the  time  when  placed  on  the 
pulleys,  the  more  so  when  placed  on  the  pulleys  tightly. 
Therefore  it  has  to  be  made  long  enough  to  transmit 
power  without  undue  tension,  and  for  this  reason  the 
distance  between  the  two  pulleys  has  to  be  long  enough 
and  the  working  strain  per  square  inch  of  section  low 
enough  to  allow  sufficient  deflection  in  the  rope.  As 
a  guidance  to  the  amount  of  deflection  necessary,  be 
it  said  that  even  in  a  short  drive  the  deflection  of  the 
rope,  when  not  running,  should  not  be  less  than  2  feet ; 
and  for  a  distance  of  400  feet  between  pulley  centers, 
the  deflection  of  the  rope  when  running  should  be  5  feet 
in  the  driving  rope  and  10  feet  in  the  driven  rope. 

Either  the  top  or  the  bottom  rope  may  be  the  driving 
one,  the  former  being  preferable ;  but  the  ropes  should 
never  be  crossed. 

Power  can  be  transmited  to  a  distance  of  6000  feet 


WIRE   ROPE  TRANSMISSION  145 

and  more  without  great  loss;  but  as  two  pulleys 
should  on  no  account  be  more  than  500  feet  apart, 
intermediate  stations  are  placed  along  the  road. 

Precautions  should  be  taken  against  the  possibility 
of  the  rope  swaying.  This  may  be  caused  either  by  the 
influence  of  the  wind,  by  a  bad  splice,  by  the  rope 
wearing  too  much,  by  the  pulleys  not  being  balanced 
well  or  by  the  pulleys  not  being  in  the  same  plane.  It 
is  of  importance  that  the  pulleys  be  exactly  in  line, 
and  careful  attention  should  be  given  to  the  construc- 
tion and  placing  of  the  bearings.  Although  the  bearings 
are  not  strained  excessively,  the  steps  are  usually 
made  long  and  movable.  The  connection  between  the 
shaft  and  the  pulley  is  best  made  by  means  of  tangen- 
tial keys. 

Some  engineers,  when  two  ropes  are  found  necessary 
for  the  transmission  of  the  power  in  question,  use 
pulleys  containing  two  grooves  each,  and  make  the 
same  kind  of  pulleys  for  the  intermediate  stations  of 
long-distance  driving;  whereas  others  advise  a  separate 
pulley  for  each  rope,  both  being  connected  with  each 
other  by  a  clutch. 

The  diameter  of  the  smallest  pulley  has  to  be  large 
enough  in  comparison  with  the  diameter  of  the  rope 
or  the  thickness  of  the  single  wires  used  to  easily  over- 
come the  stiffness  in  the  rope.  The  larger  the  pulleys, 
the  longer  the  rope  will  last. 

The  rim  of  the  pulley  is  V-shaped,  and  the  bottom  of 
the  groove  is  dovetailed  to  receive  a  lining  of  wood,  rubber 
or  leather,  on  which  the  rope  rests.  The  lining  increases 
the  friction  and  reduces  the  loss  caused  by  slipping  of 


146  SHAFTING,  PULLEYS,  BELTING,  ETC. 

the  rope.  Leather  is  the  best  lining  and  lasts  about 
three  years.  Either  old  belt  leather,  well  saturated 
with  oil,  or  new  leather,  boiled  in  fish  oil,  can  be  taken. 
It  is  cut  in  pieces  of  the  same  size  as  the  dovetailed 
part  of  the  groove,  and  then  placed  on  and  pressed  to- 
gether in  the  latter.  The  pressing  is  done  by  means 
of  a  piece  of  wood.  The  last  remaining  small  space  in 
the  groove  is  filled  with  soft  rubber.  If  the  lining  has 
to  consist  of  rubber,  this  is  softened  and  hammered 
into  the  groove.  For  wood  lining,  thin  blocks  of  the 
required  size  are  placed  into  the  groove  through  a  hole 
provided  in  the  bottom  of  the  rim.  This  slot  is  closed 
by  a  plate  and  fastened  to  the  bottom  of  the  rim  by 
means  of  screws  after  all  blocks  have  been  inserted. 
The  lining  has  to  be  turned  absolutely  true,  for  which 
reason  the  filling  is  done  while  the  pulley  is  still  in  the 
lathe. 

Pulleys  up  to  3  feet  in  diameter  are  built  with  cast- 
iron  arms;  whereas  larger  pulleys  have  wrought-iron 
arms  made  of  round  iron,  cast  in  the  rim  and  boss. 
Pulleys  under  8  feet  6  inches  in  diameter  are  made  in 
one  piece,  if  for  other  reasons  it  is  not  necessary  to  have 
them  in  halves. 

Guide  pulleys  are  used  for  long  ropes,  especially 
if  there  is  not  sufficient  hight  above  the  ground.  The 
guide  pulleys  are  of  the  same  construction  as  the  main 
pulleys,  and  for  the  driving  rope  they  are  also  made  of 
the  same  diameter.  The  diameter  of  the  guide  pulleys 
for  the  driven  rope  can  be  made  from  20  to  25  per  cent, 
smaller. 

The  breaking  strength  of  unannealed  wires  per  square 


WIRE   ROPE  TRANSMISSION  147 

inch  of  section  and  according  to  thickness  and  quality 
is:  For  iron  wires  from  70,000  to  110,000  pounds, 
and  for  steel  wires  from  110,000  to  130,000  pounds. 
For  thinner  wires  a  higher  value  is  taken  than  for  thick 
ones. 

The  diameter  of  the  wires  used  for  making  ropes  for 
transmitting  power  is  from  0.02  to  o.i  inch,  and  on 
account  of  the  stiffness,  no  wires  above  the  latter  size 
should  be  used.  A  rope  consisting  of  a  greater  number 
of  thin  wires,  besides  being  stronger  is  more  pliable 
and  lasts  longer  than  a  rope  of  the  same  area  consisting 
of  a  less  number  of  thicker  wires. 


INDEX 

PAGE 
A 

American  Mfg.  Co 136 

B 

Bauer,  Chas.  A 54 

Beams  to  carry  stringers,  finding    '.  42 

Bearings,  locating    3 

Belt,  building 94 

Belt  creep    106 

dressing 91,  100 

comparative  test 102 

running  off    101 

shifter  device  upon  column    9 

sizes   132 

Belt,  leather,  selection 89 

marking  spliced  part 12 

new,  putting  on     19,  20 

slack 100 

splicing  on  the  pulleys    81 

throwing  on 12 

tight 100 

wire-lacing 12 

Belt-clamps,  use 19 

Belting  and  pulley  chart 129 

Belting,  cleaning    97 

horse-power  transmitted 132,  133 

use  and  abuse 99 

width 132 

149 


150  INDEX 

PAGE 

Belts,  cleaning   88 

keeping  clean   94 

leather,  care  and  management 89 

splicing 72 

main  line 5 

taking-up 1 1 

Bird,  Prof.  Wm.  W.  . .' 106,  107 

Blue  Book  of  Rope  Transmission 136 

Board  for  use  in  lining  countershaft    35,  36 

Boiled  linseed  oil  in  wire  rope 144 

Bolt  and  nut  for  moving  pulleys 62 

for  hanger,  size 40 

Bolt,  preventing  turning    11,21 

Boysen,  C,  M.  E 143 

Brands,  effect  on  leather    90 

Breaking  strain  on  shaft 28 

strength  of  unannealed  wires 146 

Bunsen  burner,  use  in  moving  pulley    62 

Bushing,  split     2 


C 

Center  drive  for  heavily  loaded  shaft 7 

stock 90 

Chart,  belting  and  pulley 129 

Cleaning  belting 97 

Clutch,  rim-friction,  arrangement 5 

Clutches,  coupling 31 

tightening  while  shafting  is  in  motion 7 

Collars,  split  wood 3 

Compass  saw,  use  in  locating  beams 45 

Contact,  extra,  securing   17 

Continuous- wrap  system  of  rope  drive 112 

-wrap  system  with  direct-acting  tightener 113 

Core,  cotton,  of  wire  rope    : 143 

rope 124 


INDEX  151 

PAGE 

Countershaft,  lining    32,  33,  35,  36,  37 

Couplings,  flanged  bolt 3 

Cresson  Co.,  Geo.  V.,  catalog 132 

D 

Deflection  of  rope    144 

Diameter  of  splice  • 136 

rope .   124,  135 

of  wires  for  transmission  rope 147 

Diameters,  pulley 131 

Differential  action  on  ropes 109,  112,  116 

Disks  for  plumb-bob 49 

Distance  of  power  transmission  by  wire  rope 144 

Dixon,  Walter  E.,  M.  E.       72,  89 

Dressing,  waterproof,  for  belts    91 

Driving  an  overhead  floor    6 

E 

Elbow  bolts 46 

Emery  cloth  for  packing 23,  24 

End  drive  compared  with  center  drive    7 

English  transmission  splice    136 

Evans,  William 102 

F 

Farmer,  T.,  Jr 102 

Fastening  strands  of  splice 136 

Fiber,  rope    124 

Filled  belts    91 

Flanged  bolt  couplings 3 

G 

Gasoline  blow  torch,  use  in  getting  oil  out  of  belt 88 

Gluing  a  joint . 85 


152  INDEX 

PAGE 

Greene,  F.  S 122 

Guide  pulleys 146 

H 

Hanger  adjustment,  securing 40,  41 

bearing,  repairing  worn  end 14 

positions,  marks 3 

Hanger,  removing  to  take  off  pulley 63 

sliding  out  of  wall  box    i 

Hangers,  crosswise  of  shaft    42 

Hangers  not  allowing  vertical  adjustment '       3 

Heads  of  hemp 127 

Hemp 125,127 

Herrman,  Chas i,  21,  32 

Holman,  A.  G.,  M.  E 1 29 

Hook  bolts    46 

Horse-power  transmitted  by  belting 132,  133 

Hoyt,  R 1 08 

J 

Joints  in  leather  belt 95 

Journaled  end  of  shaft,  proper  length    i 

K 

Kavanagh,  Wm 61 

Kent's  Handbook 132 

Kinks,  practical 61 

L 

Lag  screws,  boring  for   46 

Laps  of  leather  belt,  length 90 

of  leather  belt,  thickness 94 

Leather  belts,  care  and  management 89 

selection  .  .  89 


INDEX  153 

PAGE 

Leather-cutting  tool 75 

Leather,  length  for  belt     90,  95 

Length  of  splice 135 

Leveling  shafting , 54,  58 

Line,  leveling   52 

setting   51 

Lining  a  countershaft    32,  33,  35,  36,  37 

of  pulley,  wire  rope  transmission    145 

shafting    30,  54 

Loosening  pulley  that  has  seized    26 

Lubrication  of  rope 123 

M 

McBarnes,  Wm.  H. 99 

Main  shaft  belted  to  engine  and  to  countershaft 8 

Marks  on  ends  of  shafts. 2 

to  show  hanger  positions    3 

Mounting  dynamos  and  motors    18 

Mule  belt 13 

Multiple-rope  system 108 

N 
Neatsfoot  oil  as  belt  dressing 103 

O 

Oil,  boiled  linseed,  on  wire  rope 144 

effect  on  belt 92 

getting  out  of  belt    87 

P 

Packing  to  secure  good  clamping  fit 23,  24 

Plank  to  use  in  sliding  hanger  out  of  wall  box.  . i 

Plumb-bob    49,    58 

-bob  method  of  lining  countershaft 38 


154  INDEX 

PAGE 

Point  slipping 92 

Power  transmission  by  wire   ropes,  distance 144 

Practical  kinks 61 

Pulley  and  belting  chart 1 29 

diameters    131,  145 

lining,  wire  rope  transmission .....' 145 

shafts  holding  arrangement  and  adjusting  contrivance    ....        13 

speed 1 29 

Pulley,  cast-iron,  moving  62 

driving,  location 5 

loose     61 

seized,  loosening 25,  26 

Pulleys  for  wire  rope  transmission 145,  147 

Pulleys,  guide 146 

loosening 65,  67,  70 

moving : 62 

removing 65,  67,  70 

solid 4 

split    5 

R 

Rope,  core  .  .' : 1 24 

diameter 124,  135 

differential  action  109,  112,  116 

drives 108 

fibers 1 24 

lubrication 123 

splicing 135 

strands 124 

transmission  135 

new  scheme 115 

ordering 122 

Ropes,  slack in 

tight.  . in 

Rusting  of  wire  rope,  preventing 144 


INDEX 


155 


Scrapers  for  removing  glue 74,  75 

Scrapers,  turning  edge    76,  77 

Seizing  of  pulley 25 

Separate-rope  system 108 

Set-screws,  use 23 

Shaft,  breaking  strain 28 

causes  of  breaking 16 

preventing  turning 15,  16 

repairing  break '. 17 

journaled  off  to  act  as  collar 2 

length  of  journaled  part  of  end i 

Shaft  line,  space  between  end  and  wall 3 

Shafting,  apparatus  for  leveling  and  lining 54 

hints i,  21,  32 

leveling   58 

line,  turning  up    49 

lining   30 

testing  alinement  and  level 29 

Shafts  of  light- working  counters,  marring 10 

Sheaves    135 

Sheet  iron  for  packing 24 

Sizes  of  belts 132 

of  rope,  effect   no 

Slack  ropes in 

Slip  of  belt,  legitimate 107 

Space  between  end  of  shaft  line  and  wall 3 

Speed,  pulley    129 

Splice,  diameter 136 

English  transmission 136 

fastening  strands    136 

length 135 

Splice  opener  for  heavy  belts 72 

Splice,  wire  rope    144 

workmanship    136 

Spliced  part  of  belt,  marking • 12 


156  INDEX 

PAGE 

Splicing  belt  on  the  pulleys .  81 

board ?8,  79 

leather  belts    72 

r°Pe    135 

Split  bushing 2 

Split-pulley,  tightening    23 

Split  wood  collars    3 

Steel  for  sharpening  scraper 76 

Stillson  wrench,  use 22 

Strands  of  rope 124 

Stretchers,  position    49 

Stringers,  locating  beams  to  carry    42 

Stringers  of  drop  hangers,  thickness 38 

Superior  ads  hemp 127 

Swaying  of  rope,  preventing    145 

T 

Take-up  for  rope  drive 112 

-up  sheave  for  rope  drive 1 16 

Testing  alinement  and  level  of  shafting 29 

Tight  ropes in 

Tightener,  automatic,  for  rope  drive   113 

Tightener  for  3i-rope  drive 117 

system,  dangerous   6 

Tightening  ropes 112 

Timbers  of  boarded-over  ceiling,  locating    42,  45 

Tin  for  packing 24 

Tool  for  leveling  shafting 58 

Tools  for  splicing  leather  belts 72 

Transmission  rope 135 

rope,  ordering 122 

Transmission,  wire  rope 143 

rope,  deflection  of  rope 144 

Traveling  take-up  for  rope  drive 112 

Tucking  strands 139 


INDEX 


157 


PAGE 

Turning  edge  of  scrapers  76,  77 

up  line  shafting    49 

V 

V-shaped  rails,  for  mounting  dynamos  and  motors 18 

Vertical  adjustment  for  hangers 3 

W 

Water,  effect  on  belt 92 

Width  of  belting     132,  133 

Willis,  Geo.  F 115 

Wire  diameter,  for  transmission  rope 147 

Wire-lacing  a  belt    12 

Wire  rope,  splice 144 

transmission    143 

Wrench,  proper  way  to  use 22 


Zebu  manila  hemp    1 25,  1 27 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  lAgt  DA_E 
STAMPED  BELOW 


WILL  INCREASE  TO  SO  c 
DAY    AND    TO    $1.00    Of 

OVERDUE. 


SEVENTH   DAY 


YB   15839 


196488 


